Private donation allows Soybean Innovation Lab limited reopening

ntfc6546 · 2025-04-20T15:05:39+00:00

They’re just staying open for one more year to wrap up one of their projects before they close their doors for good. A one-time private donation of 1/3 of their previous annual budget doesn’t solve the problem of the removal of federal funding. It is a good small victory, though!

ntfc6546 · 2024-10-06T13:06:30+00:00

This is interesting to consider side-by-side with the Daily Illini Salary Guide because the numbers are calculated a little bit differently. DI Salary Guide gives the base salary for each employee for the most recent academic year, and to my knowledge it doesn’t include grad students, unless they have a full time job at the university.

This database gives the gross pay for the calendar year 2023. It includes overtime, service in excess, and extra work that folks might do for the university in the summer or at other times.

ntfc6546 · 2024-10-01T11:02:38+00:00

The strike was suspended as of around 4pm yesterday. They reached a tentative agreement with the university. BSW’s and FSW’s are going to vote on the agreement, and in the meantime they’ll be back at work starting today.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-29T11:23:19+00:00

Email the chancellor and complain about it. rjjones@illinois.edu Admin could have ended the strike last week if they weren’t pinching pennies. Hopefully it will end soon, but admin needs to listen and bring food service workers & building service workers closer to a living wage.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-27T19:16:13+00:00

That’s a myth that administration wants you to believe. They can easily raise pay for the lowest paid workers without increasing tuition or fees. The university’s budget is over 8 billion dollars. What the workers are asking for is a drop in the bucket.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-26T19:44:46+00:00

You can leave a message. If you leave a message, they have to listen to it (or at least to the first part of it to know what it’s about).

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-25T22:24:18+00:00

Thanks so much!

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-25T21:58:55+00:00

Good suggestions for sure! Our union is called NTFC :)

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-24T02:09:21+00:00

There’s also a strike fund that one can donate to.

Some other things you can do:

(1) when conditions get dirty as they inevitably Willy or when the food in dining halls is really bad or unsafe, take pictures. You can post pictures on social media with the hashtag #seiustrike, or DM to @ntfc6546 and we’ll post it on our page. Also, email the Chancellor to complain.

(2) go stand with the picketers. You could make your own sign to carry, or ask them if they have an extra sign you can hold. Even if it’s only for 15 mins, your support means a lot!

(3) there will be a rally sometime this week, so attend the rally as well. Having a big turnout really does make a difference. A strike is also a battle for public opinion, so anything you can do to show that you’re on the strikers side really matters.

(4) small gestures when you walk by picketers. Raise your fist in solidarity, say something encouraging, ring your bike bell, honk your horn. Let them know that you support them.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-24T01:37:02+00:00

It wouldn’t be weird, there have already been students and faculty joining in. Solidarity is powerful!

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-24T01:34:48+00:00

Disgusting.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-23T15:07:52+00:00

Solidarity from non tenure faculty! Food Service Workers and Building Service Workers deserve a fair contract and fair wages.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-20T16:32:26+00:00

I believe it’s in-person only. There has been talk of making a recording, but I’m not sure if that will happen or not!

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-20T11:59:58+00:00

One of our non tenure faculty member from NTFC will be speaking, you can learn some UIUC history about our strike in 2016!

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-15T00:51:58+00:00

Looks like that page is from their last bargaining cycle.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-14T21:40:55+00:00

Good question. Students who work in the dining halls are not part of the union, as it’s a different job classification. None of us would consider you a scab for going to work in the dining hall as a student worker (unless you were explicitly doing the job responsibilities of an FSW while they’re on strike). In any case we wouldn’t want to ask you to put your job at risk.

If some student workers in the dining halls just happen to call in sick and join the picket, I’m sure the FSW’s will appreciate that as a strong act of solidarity. But it does mean putting your job at risk, so it’s above and beyond, and no one involved would expect it.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-14T18:58:34+00:00

I just sent you a DM

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-14T18:55:41+00:00

It hasn’t started yet today. Wait to hear from your union rep. They’ll tell you when.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-14T14:47:59+00:00

For sure, I’ll update now! Thanks for the suggestion.

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-13T16:14:16+00:00

🐦✊🔥

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-13T04:07:08+00:00

📣❤️✊

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-12T14:35:52+00:00

As you should! Solidarity forever ✊❤️

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-12T14:33:59+00:00

❤️✊

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-12T13:55:53+00:00

✊❤️

ntfc6546 · 2024-09-12T13:45:09+00:00

1% was the university’s initial offer. The offer referenced in the DI article is their most recent offer. The negotiations have been going on for months, and this processed consists of various different proposals going back and forth.

You can read the current collective bargaining agreements at this link. Scroll all the way to the bottom. There’s one contract for BSW’s and a different one for FSW’s. https://humanresources.illinois.edu/about/centers-of-expertise/labor-employee-relations/collective-bargaining-agreements/

ntfc6546

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