Faculty at the University of Illinois Chicago Are on Strike
After months without a contract, faculty at the University of Illinois Chicago went on strike this week. We spoke to workers about the strike and their demands, including mental health resources for students and greater job security for contingent faculty.
UIC students show solidarity with faculty members on the University of Illinois Chicago campus who are on strike. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
On Tuesday, January 17, University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) workers represented by UIC United Faculty (UIF) went on strike. The walkout comes after faculty reached an impasse in bargaining with the UIC administration; management was found guilty of bargaining in bad faith by the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board last month. Workers say they have now been without a contract for over nine months. Jacobin’s Sara Wexler spoke with two faculty members on strike about their experience with bargaining and the union’s demands, which include adequate mental health resources for their students, greater job security for contingent faculty, and higher wages for tenure- and non-tenure-system faculty.
Sara Wexler
Can you tell me why you’re on strike today?
Charitianne Williams
We are on strike today for more transparency in decisions that affect faculty working conditions, better pay that recognizes the work that UIC faculty do, and a more equitable distribution of resources for our entire UIC community.
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