Our Platform

  • We call for the immediate raising of all Student Academic Appointment (SAA) contracts to the cost of living in Bloomington, a contractual guarantee of annual raises, and guaranteed summer funding.

  • We call for more appropriate and consistent limits on SAA workload across units, consistent and clear degree requirements across graduate programs, expanded SAA input on department curricula, and a commitment to making graduate work accessible for all.

  • We call on IU to ensure that international graduate workers are treated with dignity, that work and academic opportunities are distributed equitably, and that international students have access to the resources they need to deal with issues related to visa status.

  • We call for a more thorough and publicized paid medical leave policy, guaranteed parental leave, affordable dependent medical coverage, subsidized child care, expanded coverage for surgical and mental care, and protections for reproductive rights.

  • We call for continued investment in graduate funding from the administration so that necessary improvements in our working conditions are sustainable and do not come at the expense of departments, especially smaller programs and marginalized graduate workers.

Legacy Platform

Our previous platform focused on five key issues - learn more about what we’ve won:

We need a cost of living adjustment because…

  • "I work two jobs for IU, I barely can keep up with school, and I’m still food insecure." - Hannah F.

  • "Barely making ends meet is not enough. One major financial disaster nearly destroyed my life and nearly put me into debt. I cannot continue to live on such an edge." - Sannoong H.

  • "I cannot meet monthly expenses for housing utilities and food." - Brenda B.

  • "Rents increase every year and the IU administration has been complicit in the destruction of affordable student housing, such as BBHN apartments and other on-campus housing units. In the meantime, the city has been focusing on building more luxury apartment complexes." - Eduardo A.

  • "Since I began working at IU, my monthly rent has increased by about $300. On top of this, food, gas for my car, and my electricity bill is about all I can afford. I recently had a pipe burst in my apartment and my car engine died. I do not have any addition resources to deal with emergencies like this. Sometimes I have to skip some meals in order to make it to the end of the month. A cost of living increase is not a luxurious request; it is a humane necessity." - Evan S.

  • "We are human beings, and IU is not helping with the impact the university itself contributes to the increasing cost of living in Bloomington (i.e., increasing enrollment but decreasing on-campus housing causing higher rental rates)." - Lawrence G.

  • "Housing is increasing in price significantly and food prices are becoming restrictive." - Edward S.

  • "It is the right thing to do and this university should support their graduates." - Claire C.

  • "Rents increase every year in Bloomington, while our stipends remain the same. Furthermore, inflation has made it so difficult to purchase essentials because the value of the dollar simply buys less. Bloomington is the most expensive town in Indiana to live in, and our wages should reflect how expensive rents are, and the changes in the US economy." - Joie M.

  • "Things like conference registrations and travel are high and take away the little we have to pay for high rent, books, and health care." - Margaret M.

  • "We need to be able to maintain a reasonable standard of living so we can focus on our academic pursuits and not basic financial burdens. How can we reasonably be expected to focus on school if we are constantly worried about paying rent in Bloomington." - Apoorva G.

  • "Surviving in Bloomington is harder each year with rent and cost of living otherwise continuously increasing. Without a cost of living adjustment we will need to continue struggling against the administration in order to have our basic needs met, and this means less time and energy doing the things we are here to do: teaching, researching, learning." - Nuria A.