Indiana University gives grad workers all they've asked for — except a recognized labor union

With a new slate of improvements to graduate working conditions, the Indiana University administration has fulfilled nearly all of the prominent student labor coalition's demands — all except an independent, permanent seat at the decision-making table.

In addition to covering mandatory fees for graduate workers, the university now will waive the international student fee, expand graduate student health and wellness offerings, strengthen the graduate worker grievance process and establish a new graduate student advisory committee for better communication with campus leadership.

More:Indiana University grad workers are pledging to strike this fall. Here's why.

IU spokesman Chuck Carney credits the graduate student task force's recommendations for the changes, but the Indiana Graduate Workers Coalition claims these concessions would not have been made without students independently organizing as a union.

"Without pressure from the workers who are organizing right now, it's unclear that there would be sustainable changes," Katie Shy, IGWC representative, said. "The administration is sort of projecting and hoping (for) the loss of momentum in our coalition and the dissolving of our movement into various committees. Coalition members do not see that happening."

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IGWC members will weigh in on whether union recognition is still worth fighting for in a Sept. 25 vote, which will determine if they resume the labor strike suspended last spring. If members vote to continue, hundreds of graduate workers, including many who teach undergraduate classes, may stop working on campus.

Here's what's new for IU graduate workers: committee representation, expanded benefits, more

In April, many student graduate workers went on a labor strike for four weeks, requesting union recognition from the IU administration and an official process to discuss benefits, higher wages and fee reduction.

Since then, IU has responded with changes that directly mirror IGWC's platform of demands. The university has increased the minimum stipend by 46% and promised to have a periodic analysis of wages to ensure IU keeps pace with what other Big Ten universities are offering. Mandatory fees, including the additional fee that international graduate workers had to pay, are now covered by the university as well.

Echoing another demand from IGWC, IU will create a comprehensive guide to grievance pathways for graduate students, including those who work on campus, at both the school and campus levels.

IU also will formalize and standardize paid time-off for graduate workers. Carney said this change is simply codifying pre-existing practices.

Provost Rahul Shrivastav previously said supporting graduate workers likely will cost millions. While IGWC members are happy about the changes, Shy said workers want better transparency in how the changes will be sustainable while not financially burdening university personnel in other departments. Carney said a long-term plan to sustain the changes is being discussed, but guaranteed the improvements are permanent.

The administration expanded graduate student representation through two committees. The Graduate Student Advisory Committee is a new addition intended to meet regularly with the graduate school dean and provost; it will be an environment where students can raise issues and discuss solutions to improve their experience, Carney said. President Pamela Whitten and Provost Shrivastav also support Bloomington Faculty Council's ongoing efforts to re-establish the Student Academic Appointee Affairs Committee.

"Establishing more channels is really the best way to have more access to campus leadership, and they'll have a way to make sure their concerns and other matters are heard. It's truly just opening up pathways more than anything else," Carney said.

Shy said the administration has "steadfastly refused dialogue with the union regarding roles on existing committees and these new bodies that are being created in the task force announcement." How many of the graduate committee seats will be graduate workers or how the committee members will be chosen has not been finalized, according to Carney.

Who should get credit for improving conditions?

Carney credits the graduate student task force as the force behind the changes.

"We have listened to the concerns that we've heard throughout the townhall meetings that we've had on this and other concerns that have been sent to us, and we've tried to act on those," Carney said.

Shy said the task force is not where these ideas originated, given that IGWC has had a version of these demands for several years. Shy attributed the administration's response to the pressures of an impending strike.

"We know that the administration has announced raises increasingly close to every strike that's been announced in the past. Our members are able to see this as a tactic but also recognize the enormous change in our living and working conditions that's been made by this announcement," Shy said. "At the same time, we're still looking for a permanent role for the union on campus, in the room where these decisions about our contracts and our wages are made."

IGWC to expand its platform of demands, IU task force to continue recommendations

If IU administrators and the IGWC can agree on one thing, it's that the work is not over. The two entities have different ideas on what that means.

Carney said the task force will continue to come up with ways to improve diversity, equity and inclusion, professional development, housing and curriculum concerns for IU's graduate students. Further recommendations and potential implementation are expected.

According to Shy, the IGWC is looking to expand its platform with more demands to better the graduate worker experience. Shy said the IGWC is still asking for a guarantee of annual raises for graduate workers, which has not been confirmed by university officials.

"We are really looking for a formal relationship with the university that allows us to communicate (our concerns) without setting strike dates, without using the strike as our main method of communication," Shy said.

Carney pointed toward the IU Board of Trustees, whose members continue to oppose the idea, as the ultimate decision-maker on student worker unionization.

"The process to enhance the experience for our graduate students is best accomplished through the existing channels of shared governance and collaboration, some new and some that have long driven IU’s progress," the board wrote in a message to the Bloomington Faculty Council in June.

IGWC leadership still advocates for union recognition, claiming the current improvements were only announced due to the pressure from the strike.

"Union recognition is still worth fighting for because we are workers on this campus and the work that we do is integral to the functioning of the university. We deserve a say — not just this year, not just with an impending strike date — but every year in what our working conditions look like," Shy said.

When asked whether the improvements will dissuade IGWC members from striking later this month, Shy said the spring strike was primarily about the lack of union recognition. She believes that will continue to be a driving force regardless of recent developments.

"We went on strike for union recognition over a thousand strong. Our membership keeps growing every day. We really view the coalition, the union, as a permanent body that will stay organized over the next couple of years," Shy said.

Rachel Smith covers Indiana University and student life for The Herald-Times. Reach her at rksmith@heraldt.com or on Twitter @RachelSmithNews.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: IU makes more concessions with graduate workers, strike vote upcoming