25 Jul Union to UIC Administration: Stop Playing Games with Members’ Money
UIC Unions Stand Together
Yesterday, the UIC United Faculty joined with the Graduate Employees Organization, Illinois Nurses Association, and SEIU Local 73 to tell the UIC administration that we will not accept any further bureaucratic dithering or intransigence where union membership is concerned.
UIC Administration: Playing Games With Your Dues Money
On June 27th, the US Supreme Court issued a ruling in Janus v. AFSCME, which stripped unions of the right to collect fair share fees. Anticipating this, UICUF and a number of other campus unions had been working with UIC administration to make sure the transition would roll out smoothly when it came. We were assured by the administration that dues deductions would cease for non-members, and continue for members. We were assured the process would be seamless and accurate.
However, after the ruling, the administration was non-responsive and unwilling to meet with us. Representatives of UIC Payroll, Human Resources and Labor Relations systematically ignored our efforts to confirm accuracy of membership lists prior to the July payroll deadline. Since then, administrators from these offices have insisted that there is no need to meet and discuss this topic.
Given that in the last payroll, UIC failed to deduct dues for over a hundred of our members without notice, we very strongly disagree.
Solidarity In Action
We have been ignored, told nothing has changed, told changes can’t be made in a timely manner, told that they will happily drop our members outside the bounds of our contracts, and told that our contracts have not been violated. So yesterday, dozens of UIC union members and leadership gathered at the Human Resources office tell them a few things.
Naturally, they sent a visibly flustered, completely new and unknown Labor Relations representative to deal with us, while the head of LR was “not in the office,” even though he was seen moments after we left. Unperturbed, we read our demands with a promise to return if our concerns are not addressed immediately.
Below is our open letter to the UIC Administration. We hope they will respond with clear answers and real solutions. We are, however, prepared should they choose to continue to obfuscate and obstruct.
Open Letter to UIC Administration
Thomas Riley
Executive Director- Labor and Employee Relations
University of Illinois at Chicago- Human Resources
Westside Research Office Bldg. (MC 264)
1747 West Roosevelt Road
Chicago, IL 60612
July 24, 2018
Dear Mr. Riley,
In light of the June 27 Supreme Court ruling in Janus v. AFSCME, and in response to the University’s attempts to unilaterally impose a new system for payroll deductions and revocations without consultation from the campus unions and in violation of the collective bargaining agreements, the Illinois Nurses Association, SEIU Local 73, United Faculty, and Graduate Employees Organization are demanding the following. We expect a response from you by Tuesday, July 31, 2018.
- The University will stop stealing money from the Unions by immediately correcting payroll codings by the next pay period. The University will compensate the Unions the amount of money it failed and refused to deduct in the last two pay periods.
- The University will cease and desist from improperly honoring revocation requests made directly to the Employer. Union membership is between the member and the Union. The University will not cease to deduct and remit payroll deductions from a Union member unless directed to do so by the Union.
- If the University is in possession of a signed Union membership card for a member of the bargaining unit at least 7 business days before a paycheck, the University will deduct dues from that member’s paycheck and remit them to the Union.
- When the Union submits new membership cards to the University, within 2 business days, the University will confirm receipt of the cards to the Union and will confirm that the cards will be properly processed to facilitate payroll deductions.
- When the University fails to process payroll deductions from a member of the bargaining unit with a signed Union membership card on file, it will notify the Union upon discovery of the error and will, upon the Union’s request, process double the normal amount of payroll deductions in the next paycheck.
- To ensure proper payroll deductions, the University will provide the most up-to-date bargaining unit list, in Excel spreadsheet format, to the Union upon request.
If these demands are not met, the unions reserve our rights to pursue any and all remedies available to us under our respective collective bargaining agreements, state, and/or federal law.
Sincerely,
Jeff Schuhrke and Anne Kirkner
GEO Co-Presidents
Janet Smith
President, United Faculty
Doris Carroll and Paul Pater
Co-Chief Stewards INA
Membership
SEIU Local 73