UIC Updates
Last Updated: 3/8/24
UIC workers need to be strike ready by May
Union Siblings,
We’ve been bargaining since last June, yet we haven’t received economic proposals for all four of our CBAs. It’s clear that management is wasting our time.
Even though we haven’t seen a raise in over a year, the U of I still managed to find $400,000 to pay President Killeen a big bonus in 2024! At nearly $1 million a year, Killeen is already among the top ten highest-paid public university presidents in the country.
All the while, one out of five Civil Service positions at UIC are vacant, leaving students and patients with gaps in services.
Management says they want to be competitive; they say they want to retain employees, but they continue to prioritize private companies over the needs of students, patients, and workers. It’s time for UIC to put their money where their mouth is.
If we don’t take action, we are giving them permission to mistreat us, underfund the essential services we provide, and avoid paying us what we are worth. We need to show management that we are prepared to strike for a fair contract. The time to take a stand is now.
In solidarity,
The UIC Bargaining Committee
Click here to sign the strike petition
Read more about the fight for a fair contract here. We are fighting for:
- Pay increases for all titles in all departments,
- Equitable pay scales competitive with the market,
- Pay to honor education, certifications, and longevity,
- Incentives to cover staffing shortages,
- Protections against privatization.
Latest Bargaining Updates
We started bargaining all four of the SEIU 73 Collective Bargaining Agreements on June 13, 2023. See the presentation we gave to management on our first day with our bargaining goals and approach here. Additionally, we presented our economics proposal to management in October, which you can find here.
Bargaining is open for member observers to attend during times during the day when you are not working. RSVP to attend a bargaining session here.
A union is as strong as the members! So sign up to join the contract action team and take action in our fight to improve working conditions at UIC!
You can find previous bargaining updates under the “Purple Wednesday” tab.
Bargaining Update — March 6
On Monday, March 4, UIC management presented economic proposals to your Clerical bargaining team. Similar to their response in Technical, we were disappointed that UIC’s proposal failed to address the serious pay inequities within the Clerical unit. Though UIC has conceded that the current pay scales are flawed, they have yet to present any solutions. In fact, if their latest proposals for both Technical and Clerical pay scales were implemented as is, it would result in less money for some workers. Also, UIC did not agree to standardize the number of steps for Clerical titles, they did not agree to add steps for the DSCC, and they are still only offering 2% annual pay increases! We told UIC that if they wanted to prevent a strike, they needed to be prepared to give us REAL proposals with REAL solutions.
On Monday, the bargaining team sent out a call to action to all members to start preparing to strike by May. If we don’t take action, there are no consequences to UIC for wasting time and delaying workers’ pay increases that are already long overdue. Stand with your coworkers and help us tell management that enough is enough by signing the ready to strike petition and signing up to help deliver this petition in Springfield in April.
Our next contract action team meeting to discuss the next steps will be tomorrow, March 7, at 6 PM. You can register for the meeting here.
Our next bargaining dates are:
- March 18: Technical
- March 21: Service
- March 26: All Sessions
- March 29: Professionals
Sign up for bargaining and see additional scheduled dates here.
Purple Wednesday Newsletter
To show UIC that we are standing united, it’s time to relaunch #PurpleWednesdays! Participation is easy, just wear your Local 73 purple swag – buttons, hats, t-shirts, or hoodies – or any purple on Wednesdays. Join your coworkers by purpling up next Wednesday!
Your union will be sending biweekly Purple Wednesday emails with updates on bargaining, campaigns, and other important information.
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – March 6
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – February 22
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – February 7
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – January 31
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – January 24
Bargaining Update – January 12
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – December 6
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – October 12
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – August 23
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – July 12
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – June 20
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – June 07
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – May 16
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – May 03
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – April 18
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – April 05
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – March 23
Purple Wednesday Newsletter – March 07
Find Your Union Steward and Staff Representative
Staff at the local are assigned to work with specified buildings, departments and colleges of the university. These assignments may change from time to time. Please see the list below for an updated breakdown of which staff are assigned to which areas and their contact information. If you do not see your area listed below, reach out to Melinda Bunnage, Deputy Director of Higher Education, at mbunnage@seiu73.org.
Cheriell Jackson (CJ), cjackson@seiu73.org
- UI Health
- Outpatient Care Center
- Ear & Eye Infirmary
- Rehab Services dept
- Labs & Pathology dept
- Medical Call Center dept
- Patient Access, Patient Accounting & Patient Logistics depts
- Ambulatory Care
- Chicago’s West campus
- Neuropsychiatric Institute
- College of Medicine Buildings
- Clinical Science Buildings
- Medical Sciences Building
- Marshfield Ave Building
- West Research Office Building
- Chicago’s East Campus
- 715-722 & 704 Maxwell
- Family Medicine Center & Departments
Felix Ortiz, fortiz@seiu73.org
- Division of Specialized Care for Children
- UIC School of Law
- Miles Square Clinics
- Chicago West Campus
- Hospital Building Service Workers
- Biologic Resources Laboratory
- College of Dentistry
- College of Pharmacy
- Miles Square Clinic Main
- Campus Building Service Workers and House Attendants
- Chicago East Campus
- Building Service Workers and House Attendants
Abby Schultz, aschultz@seiu73.org
- UI Health
- UIC Hospital
- Specialty Care Building
- Dialysis dept
- Continuum of Care dept
- Clinical Nutrition dept
- Info Tech Services dept
- Radiology
Andrew Yale, ayale@seiu73.org
- College of Medicine Peoria
- College of Medicine Rockford & LP Johnson
- Chicago Campus
- All East Campus Colleges & Programs (Science & Engineering, Chemistry, Liberal Arts & Sciences, Education, etc.)
- Technology Solutions
- Campus Housing
- Campus Facilities (Parking, Telecommunicators, Mail, Procurement
- Healthy Cities Collaborative
- Student Center East & West
- Daley Library & Library of the Health Sciences
- Student Services Building (East)
- Disability, Health, and Social Policy Building (East)
- Human Resources Building (West)
- School of Public Health (West)
- Applied Health Sciences Building (West)
- Administrative Office Building (West)
Look here for a complete list of UIC stewards. Every department should have a steward. If you don’t have a steward in your area, nominate yourself or someone else here!
Contract Enforcement Resources
General Information
- Back to School 2022 Flyer
- Membership Guide Fall 2021
- Meet Your Stewards Fall 2021
- HR Contact Email: uichrscivilservice@uillinois.edu
- COVID Resource Guide | En español
Worksite Issue Report Forms
- COVID Policy Tracking Report Form
- Certification Tracking Form
- Manager Conduct Report Form (Formulario de informe de conducta del gerente)
- Equity Concern Report Form (Informe de preocupación por la equidad de la Universidad de Illinois en Chicago)
Union Contracts & Relevant Policies/Resources
- Union Contracts
- Technical Vacation Payout UIC Communication
- UIC Labor Agreements Page (Wage Scales + Appendixes)
- UIC HR Policy and Rules for Civil Service Staff
- State University Civil Service System
- UIC Job Board
- UIC Retro FAQs
- Signed MOU about Parental Leave
- UIC Presentation on COVID19 Vaccinations & Contact Tracing 9/15/21
- GoTime FAQ
- FAQs on the UI Health Bilingual Certification Process
Steward Information
- Steward & Activist Nomination Form
- Steward trainings will be regularly posted on the SEIU 73 Member Webpage
- Steward Election Petition
- UIC Steward Handbook (password protected)
- Steward Info Request Form (password protected)
Looking for more news?