MSU is old school. They believe that issues like better diversity language and childcare subsidies are frivolous and unnecessary. They believe that some of the non-economic issues we have brought up say that we are not taking our responsibility as a bargaining team seriously.
Yet, the economic platform they presented reduces our compensation package drastically.
1) It removes any subsidies for spouses/dependents on healthcare.
2) It puts increases in healthcare costs on us, while making increasing vague the language of what they will cover, providing us with a lower quality plan to begin with and reducing services. Plan would be the one they select, and quite likely would not include perks like a prescription plan.
3) It further reduces our already very limited tuition compensation. Many departments require us to hold 10 credits (MSU only pays for 9) in fall/spring and ALREADY incur a cost. The GEU maintains a pool for providing for people who have to take on additional credits. This pool will be REMOVED.
4) If you ever go on a leave, you must be subjected to a medical evaluation before you return to work, and you may be put on unpaid medical leave.
MSU is trying to weaken the union. We are fighting hard to prevent that, but it is a possible reality. Please let us know how these changes might affect you, personally. Here is an example from a graduate student in geological sciences on how these changes may affect her:
"After my MS, I was employed at a non-profit. The pay wasn't great, but I had amazing healthcare. Then 2008 hit, and we incurred a drastic change in provided healthcare. Then, we incurred the costs of rising healthcare. I could no longer afford to pay my student loans and be a working adult. I had to leave that position.
Additionally, our department requires that we not take more than one 999 (PhD research credit) per semester until we've passed our comps. If I take 2.5 years to pass my comps, I only have 5 999 credits. I then have 1.5-2 years, according to our graduate handbook, to finish my degree. It is not possible to get the required 24 research credits without paying MSU out of my own pocket. These changes will impact my fiscal bottom line so much so that I would not be able to complete this degree without taking out student loans. I would never choose to attend MSU, when other universities would offer me so much more."
Is this the university you want to work for? One that devalues TAs, is working to weaken the union, and limit our abilities to educate our students? One that forces us to choose, as 20 and 30 somethings, to further delay starting or growing our families?
The next bargaining meeting is this Friday, March 27th. Come out and join the growing group of people who will stand with bargaining to tell MSU that this contract is morally reprehensible.
#StandUpForTHIS
#GEUisU
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