The Upcoming AFSCME Strike on September 5th
As you may have known for sometime through emails and personal interactions with people at the Humphrey Institute or as you may just be learning in the past few days, AFSCME technical, clerical and health care workers at the University of Minnesota are planning to strike on Wednesday, September 5th. The reality of this strike will hit hard when you see staff from the Humphrey Institute out on the picket line and you may have to cross it to get to class.
Over the past weeks we as students have received little information about the strike but here are some websites that you may find good for getting both perspectives:
AFSCME and supporters sites:
University Sites:
- Up-to-date strike info
- Info for students
- Settlement offer
- Important information for non-striking employees, including student employees and graduate assistants
We at PASA want your feedback on what this student association should do. Should we create a resolution response in support of the workers? Should we create a petition for individuals to sign? Should we do nothing?
We’d like your comments and feedback to have a meeting on the subject as soon as possible.
Thank you,
Ben Marcy
PASA VP
The weblog of the Public Affairs Student Association at the University of Minnesota's Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.
Login to UThink
Login to the blog
Post a new entryUpcoming Events
Newsfeed
Categories
University Links
Humphrey blogs
- Center blogs
- pubTalk - Public and Nonprofit Leadership Center
- Regionalities - State and Local Policy Program
- Policy Catalyst - Center for Science, Technology, and Public Policy
- School Change Exchange - Center for School Change
- By the People - Center for Democracy and Citizenship
- Smart Politics - Center for the Study of Politics and Governance
- Community blogs
- Humphrey Biographies - Student Services
- Institute Insider - Weekly newsletter
- An Affair to Remember - Public Affairs Student Association
- Institute blogs
- Humphrey blog digest - All Humphrey blog content in one place
- Humphrey Institute News On-the-Go - Communications
Links
- Humphrey Resources
- Anarcho Capitalist student bookmarket - Why pay more for books other students want to get rid of?
- Summer Internship Blogs
- House of Courage - An internship in Mombasa, Kenya
- Nadiya - Hope International, Ukraine - Upper Midwest Human Rights Program
- Geneva CONGO Weblog - The CONGO is an international not-for-profit organization that facilitates the participation of NGOs in United Nations debates and decisions.
Comments
Thanks for posting on this topic. There's also a good City Pages article here.
I'd like to see a resolution in support of the workers, in addition to a letter to President Bruininks posted to the Daily. I'd also urge fellow students to request that your classes are held off campus, so we don't have to cross picket lines.
Posted by: Eric Hauge | September 2, 2007 12:15 AM
As you may well know, I am i strong solidarity with the strike. I am in support of passing a resolution and assembling a strike solidarity comittee that would send a rep to every solidarity meeting being held.
I also think that Humphrey students should urge faculty to take classes off campus as much as possible, and we should make it a point to spend our lunch hours out on the picket lines with our fellow staff.
The university is doing a great injustice not only to the people working for them, but to the institution as a whole. Support staff is integral to the function of the college and we should be sure to keep these people well paid and their quality of living as high as possible.
Posted by: Dani Indovino | September 2, 2007 08:39 AM
Thank you, Ben, for your comments and for posing questions that I have been thinking about as well.
As an incoming student, new this fall to both the U and to the MPA program at the Humphrey, I am thinking about these questions a great deal. I am sure I am not the only new student/current student with these questions.
I have never crossed a picket line and do not want to cross this line. However, being new, I do not have the information that I need to understand what will be the repercussions of honoring the picket line, i.e. missing classes and/or not knowing how to get info from the U that I may need as a new student.
I appreciate that a dialogue is beginning here in PASA. Yes, I do think that some sort of organized response from PASA is warranted. I want to honor this strike and support the workers. Is it possible to do so and still begin my studies on Wednesday? I will read the info at the links that you provided and hopefully my questions will be answered there. Any other help or direction would be most appreciated.
Sincerely,
Palma Cady
MPA Program
Posted by: Palma Cady | September 3, 2007 09:29 AM