3% SAA Raises Mark Another Win – IGWC-UE Pressure Works!

July 18, 2023

Dear IU graduate workers,

Yesterday, Dean Daleke and the University Graduate School announced a 3% raise for returning SAAs for the 2023-2024 academic year. This raise is another victory in a series of IGWC-UE wins for better working and living conditions for grads across campus.

In Spring 2023, the IGWC-UE delivered a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) petition signed by over 1000 workers on campus demanding 8% raises for all workers across campus to keep up with inflation. The 3% raise will positively impact graduate workers on campus, but also all full-time faculty and staff. Our continued pressure wins wage increases across campus. For workers making $22k, an extra $660 a year, or $60 a month, can go far — covering a month’s rent, the cost of medicine or physical therapy, a week of groceries, a trip to see loved ones, and more.

Though this is a victory, it is still woefully inadequate. Let us be clear: a 3% raise is not enough. Our salaries still do not keep up with inflation, and our salary remains far from a living wage in Bloomington, which is $28,330 for 10 months and $34,000 for 12 months. This is precisely why we must keep up the pressure, keep fighting, and make sure our demands continue to be backed by the majority of grad workers on campus. 

Before IGWC-UE began organizing in 2017, regular yearly raises were almost unheard of — some schools and departments went ten years without a wage increase. Since IGWC-UE started organizing, our efforts have resulted in regular, yearly wage gains and fee reductions across campus. As a direct result of our organizing, grad workers have seen increases in their take-home salaries ranging from 20-70% in most departments and up to 100% in some departments and schools over the past 5 years. For instance, the average Media School graduate student was paid $13,500 for ten months in the 2019-2020 school year. With these raises, their income will be $22,660 for 2023-2024, a four-year increase of 68%.

We are preparing for the 2023-2024 school year, and we need you on board. Sign up to be a Department Organizer today. With the involvement of grad workers from every department across campus, we can get closer to the teaching, research, and living conditions we deserve.

Solidarity,

The Indiana Graduate Workers - United Electrical Workers