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It has been repeatedly stated by @UMich that they have responded to @geo3550’s demands in the #StrikeForSafeCampus, but they never list out our demands and respond to them! So, let’s revisit the demands and the response as of today. A thread:
To make these easier to discuss, I follow GEO’s order of points so you can cross-reference. Demands split into COVID-19 and policing demands, but in truth these are closely intertwined; we could just as easily divide them into community and graduate student demands.
GEO: “For the whole community, sufficient, transparent, robust plans for testing, contact tracing, and campus safety.”
UM acknowledged that “we do not have a model that predicts infection rates”, and only as of today has launched an on-campus random sampling program.
Further, “the COVID-19 Campus Health Response Committee is working to formalize these metrics and provide greater details,” which means the semester started without a formal shut-down plan. UM revealed the documents and plans we want never existed.
GEO: “For graduate employees, a universal right to work remotely without documentation, resources for remote work, better representation in the decision-making processes of the university surrounding health measures, and access to the health models motivating current policy.”
UM refused to grant a universal remote work option, even though they claim that they have already done this in effect. Instead, they worked to create a process for grievances about remote work to be handled quickly.
UM agreed to inform workers about supply access but only for in-person workers, not remote; GEO only became involved in decision making with strike pressure. Again, there are no health models to share; UM reopened without them.
GEO: “For parents and caregivers, care subsidy regardless of a care provider’s license status and location and the age of those who need care; allow for healthcare plans to be maintained and available even during leaves of absence taken by anyone, at no extra cost”
UM agreed to fund unlicensed childcare for 43 children by removing CARES and other funds, as long as family members didn’t take care of children and documentation could be produced. However, UM never offered healthcare plans during leaves of absence.
GEO: “For international students, better International Center support and the repeal of the $500 international student fee and document shipping fee.”
UM offered to hire one additional staff member to have greater capacity for handling international student concerns. No discussion of fees.
GEO: “For graduate students, unconditional support in the form of extensions to degree timelines and funding, a $2,500 unconditional emergency grant, rent freezes and flexible leases for on-campus housing.”
UM only noted that Rackham will announce a distributed plan of extensions up to each school (and ultimately, in most cases, each department), and did not even address the other demands, such as emergency grants, rent or lease aid, etc.
GEO: “Access to a disarmed and demilitarized workplace, where lethal weapons are prohibited, our security services do not receive military funding, there is transparency around the use of surveillance technology,...”
“... there is a standard of force for campus police, and no one faces retaliation for being unable to work due to police presence.”
UM “acknowledges that this is an important issue for the broader university community” but “we’re unable to bargain with one employee group for matters that affect the entire campus community”. No, really, they say that: https://publicaffairs.vpcomm.umich.edu/updates-regarding-the-geo-discussions/
UM never addressed lethal weapons, military funding, surveillance technology, standards of force, and retaliation fears over police presence. Anything that affects the community is off the table.
UM did not address our demands. They cherry-picked the palatable highlights that required minimal investment and no structural change. And they deny that workers have the right to care about their communities.
As we think of this strike as a community-centered abolitionist strike, nothing indicates more concretely UM’s dehumanization of its workers than this fundamental fact: we are expected to live and die for a university, a business, without advocating for our neighbors or ourselves
References include GEO's demands https://www.geo3550.org/2020/09/04/geos-demands-for-a-safe-and-just-pandemic-response-for-all/ and UM's first offer press release https://publicaffairs.vpcomm.umich.edu/updates-regarding-the-geo-discussions/ plus UM all-fac and all-student emails not yet posted online.
