Start your year off right: buy pencils, support UIC workers

Ah, the beginning of another school year. The pencils are sharp, the notebooks are clean, and the freshman are wandering around SES and BSB wondering if this is some cruel joke being played on them. But this time the new school year is also beginning with the taint of hypocrisy and injustice. As you may have heard, two unions on this campus may be forced to strike just as classes are beginning. That includes all of the clerical and administrative workers on campus (SEIU Local 73) and the security guards (AFT Local 4408) who keep our world class hospital safe.

Now in case it isn't clear from their job titles, I'm talking about most of the lowest paid employees on campus. And in case you don't yet know how America works, I'm also talking about a group of workers who are mostly women of color. Furthermore, I'm talking about the people who do much of the work to keep this school running outside of the classroom. Have a problem with registration that you need some help to solve? You'll be talking to an SEIU 73 member for that. The hospital needs to collect money from insurance companies? SEIU 73 members take care of that. We need these workers. So we need our school to treat them with the respect that they deserve. But the administration is not doing that. They're denying them basic job security and the modest raises they're asking for that do not even meet increases in the cost of living.

And don't try to justify this by talking to me about a budget crisis. Our new president got a 37% raise from his predecessor's salary. His assistant got an 85% raise! When Chancellor Allen-Meares began here a year ago, she got a $50,000 raise over her predecessor, and $500,000 worth of renovations to the mansion that she lives in for free on UIC's dime. I've also seen new furniture in BSB this summer, though I couldn't detect any problem with the old furniture. The problem is not a lack of money—the problem is poor priorities. If we are to judge by their actions, UIC DOES NOT CARE about its clerical and security staff. So I encourage every student on this campus to demonstrate that we DO CARE about them. If SEIU or the security guards have to strike over basic necessities, after you're done with class, grab a sign and join their circle. You can't tell me you have too much homework to do yet.