FAQ

Hello there! If you’ve found this page, you’re likely a graduate student. Good news! The graduate students at NIU are unionizing. We’ve created this page to help you get some more information. Below is a list of frequently asked questions and concerns regarding unionization. We think this information contains some compelling reasons why unionization is a necessary effort that we must undertake.

Interested in joining our organizing committee? Please sign up here.

What is the purpose of the GSA?

The intention of forming the GSA is to form connections between departments. That structure will further make it easier to pursue campus-wide initiatives, including potentially forming a union.

Can NIU retaliate against workers who organize a union?

No, they cannot. Firing workers for unionizing is against the law under the Illinois Education Labor Relations Act. If the employer ever did retaliate, we would file an Unfair Labor Practice charge with the state Labor Board. However, they are highly unlikely to retaliate, and higher ed employers are known for the toeing the law on this issue.

Also, there is power and safety in numbers, which is why we organize unions. When we all stand together, they can’t isolate one of us to target.

International students: International students have the legal right to join unions and are protected in doing so. In the history of union organizing, no international students have ever been deported or lost their VISA for joining a union.

What is a union?

A union is an organization of workers that wish to collectively represent themselves to their company and boss. A benefit of being in a union is that your employer is legally compelled to bargain with you over wages, healthcare, and working conditions (scheduling, harassment policies, etc.). The contracts that unions negotiate are legally enforceable, so the employer can’t just take back what union members win over time.

The union members are the union; the union isn’t an organization outside of the members. They affiliate with a national “parent union,” which provides them with helpful resources, including legal counsel that helps them navigate labor laws, but members are the ultimate decision makers.

What is the process for forming a union?

A majority of workers have to sign union cards, which we then submit to the state Labor Board. After reviewing the cards and determining that we have at least 50% +1 cards, the Board will certify our union. Then we will begin the process of negotiating our first contract.

A union contract, also known as a collective bargaining agreement (CBA), is a legally binding document that spells out the terms and conditions of employment for unionized workers. It is negotiated between the union representing the workers and the employer, and typically covers issues such as wages, benefits, working hours, job security, and workplace safety. In order for a contract to go into effect, the general membership of the union must vote to accept it. If they choose to vote it down, the bargaining team must return to the bargaining table and keep negotiating.

What are union dues, and how much are they?

Members do not pay dues until a union contract is negotiated. We are not yet at this stage of unionization, therefore you will not need to pay any dues at this current time.

Members ARE the union, the union isn’t something outside of them. Because unions are run and funded entirely by the membership, every member pays dues, which are their share of the expenses for running an effective union. Union dues support organizing, bargaining, and communications as well as go toward legal assistance. These dues are voted on by the membership, so they are democratically decided. Members make more as a result of paying dues than they would if they didn’t pay dues, because the union has the means to collectively organize and bargain for higher wages.

The first contract the union negotiates typically contains a raise equivalent to or larger than union dues, which are often 1%-2% of pay. A helpful way to think about it is that because the raise is permanent, it permanently offsets the cost of dues, and the whole amount of every raise thereafter just stays in the members’ pockets. So not only do members not lose any money to paying dues, but they make more as a result of paying them. The more contracts a union negotiates, the more workers’ wages typically go up.

Why form a union?

• Public schools with grad unions have better pay and benefits. (E.g. at UIC $22,590 is the minimum, though many depts make much more since unions don’t negotiate ceilings, and as with all unionized grad workers, they have employer-provided healthcare.)
• We need more input at NIU into how the university and departments run. At UIC, unionized grad workers negotiated that departments post guidelines for how assistantships get assigned and that assignments have to be made within a certain timeframe or else the dept pays a fine to the worker.
• At NIU, Biology grad workers got the dept to agree to providing clear, standardized expectations of assistantship workload for both students and faculty to agree upon, which a union could make possible for all depts.
• We need to remove tuition fees.

What level of action and involvement am I committing to in joining a union?

Once you sign a union card and the negotiates its first contract, the only thing required of members is that they pay union dues. Any level of involvement beyond that is up to you. The union is as strong as its members. This means that the more actively involved members are, the stronger the union is. The stronger the union, the more power you have to win at the negotiation table and elsewhere. Some ways of participating beyond paying dues are voting on contracts, attending General Membership Meetings, attending socials, being on union committees, serving as a union officer or union steward, and participating in collective actions.