Graduate Students join massive strikes at U California

Graduate students joined staff unions and undergraduates in a state wide strike protesting plans to drastically increase tuition in the face of cuts to university funding in the state.

Graduate students are facing a wide range of possible fee increases, including increases of a whopping 64% for some programs, in a move which violates a university policy to keep the grad tuition in line with other schools.

Undergraduate tuition is slated to increase 32% across the baord.

Meanwhile, senior adminsitrators apparently voted themselves a raise at the same time, while cutting wages or laying off staff and non-tenure professors.

Callout to graduate students at UC Berkeley is here.

The website of the strike is:
http://ucsolidarity.org/

A fascinating interview with Bob Samuels, president of the University of California, American Federation of Teachers (author of the blog Changing Universities) and Zen Dochterman, UCLA grad student taking, was on Democracy Now on November 20, and the interviewees provide some interesting analysis of the privatization of the university and how funding is allocated.

Supporting the strikers

80 people came out to support the SUB steelworkers in their 7th week on the picket lines Wednesday night.




Thanks to grad students in CUPE 4163 (some members above), CUPE 951 and VIPIRG for joining in this effort and coming out to show your support for the strikers. Ben Johnson from the steelworkers bargaining committee enjoys the party with union member Jose Barrios (below).






Rebecca Taylor (Grad Rep for Indigenous Social Work masters program and VIPIRG staffer) raises a ruckus with her sing-a-long (below).

All these great photos by GSS Chair Nicole O'Byrne. Thanks Nicole!