PUBLICATIONS Inside Illinois Vol. 22, No. 9, Nov. 7, 2002

December vote will decide on graduate student union

A December election will determine if graduate assistants and graduate teaching assistants on the UI’s Urbana campus will have a collective bargaining unit representative.

The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board ruled Nov. 1 to hold the election Dec. 3-4 that will decide on union representation for graduate students.

The board declined a request by the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO) to postpone the election until April 2003 because GEO was concerned that voter turnout might be impaired by the election’s timing, which is just after the Thanksgiving break and two weeks before final exams.

University officials had objected to postponing the election on the grounds that turnover and change of assistantship appointments for the spring semester would require preparation of a new list of eligible voters. Voter eligibility for the December election was determined based upon a university-provided listing of graduate teaching assistants and graduate assistants as of Oct. 20.

Approximately 2,800 graduate students will be eligible to vote in the upcoming election, which the labor board will supervise. Voters will cast their ballots at polling places in the Illini Union on Dec. 3 and at the Assembly Hall on Dec. 4 choosing between GEO representation or no representation. A majority vote will decide the outcome.

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