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Striking student workers at the University of Oregon staged a sit-in at the main campus administration building the night of May 5. Meanwhile, UO is pursuing legal and disciplinary action against students who reportedly disrupted campus events and damaged campus property. Union members will receive $500 of strike assistance per week while on the picket line, according to organizers.
Striking student workers at the University of Oregon marched in a circle Tuesday morning, hoisting signs up and down to the beat of their chant.
Tensions between the university and the union, UO Student Workers (UOSW), have grown since the strike began April 28. University police are investigating incidents of harassment, vandalism and other criminal activity, while union members accuse the university of retaliating against resident assistants on strike.
A student worker sit-in Monday night in Johnson Hall — the primary university administration building — drew police in riot gear, but ended peacefully around 10:30 p.m., with no arrests. During the sit-in, university police say tires on two police department cars were slashed. Meanwhile, negotiators were in talks until 2 a.m. Tuesday and resumed talks at noon.
Student worker wages, grievance procedures and compensation for resident assistants in UO dormitories are still on the bargaining table.
Johnson Hall sit-in
The sit-in at Johnson Hall started Monday afternoon as a peaceful protest of the university’s current grievance policy for student workers. UO Police Chief Jason Wade said students followed guidance on fire safety, making paths for people to get out of the building, and did not disturb workers in the building.
At 5:30 p.m., officers informed protesters that if they did not leave, they could be cited for criminal trespass.
Robin Bailey, a UO student and Student Workers organizer, was one of the about 50 student workers who decided to stay in Johnson Hall after the building closed Monday. Bailey said that decision was independent of union-sanctioned activities.
“We decided in that moment that we had to do something, and we were willing to risk arrest for this, because grievance and arbitration is such a huge issue,” Bailey said.
While Bailey does not work in a dining hall or coffee shop, some of his friends do and face harassment in their jobs because of the public-facing nature, he said. Bailey said his friends don’t feel empowered by how the university currently investigates student workers’ reports of harassment and believe third-party investigators would offer a fairer experience.
Wade told Lookout Eugene-Springfield that as the night went on, he decided the students would have to leave the building and called the Eugene Police Department for reinforcements. Eight officers in riot gear arrived, and the crowd of protesters outside the building had grown to between 200 to 300 people.
At 10:30 p.m., police gave students an ultimatum: If they stayed in the building, they would be arrested; if they left, no criminal charges would be pressed. The students put it to a vote, decided to leave, and vacated the building without incident.
Bailey said the number of police present made the experience unnerving. According to Wade, that between campus and City of Eugene police, there were 20 officers present.
“This is some of these people’s first time interacting with cops at all, and now suddenly there’s cops in riot gear and we’re walking down the steps and there’s like a sea of them on either side of Johnson,” Bailey said.
At the bargaining table
No agreement has been reached yet on student worker wages.
“There’s been some movement, but it’s not enough,” Bailey said Tuesday. “That’s why we’re still out here, and we’ll be out here until we get a contract.”
According to the last proposal, posted April 30, the university is offering a minimum wage of $15.58 per hour, and union is proposing $17.50.
Because the University of Oregon Student Workers is a United Auto Workers local, members who registered for strike assistance will receive $500 per week starting in two to four weeks. According to Carolyn Roderique, UAW staff organizer, every UAW member gets the same strike assistance amount — it doesn’t matter what they make when they aren’t striking.
Incidents of harassment, vandalism, damages
During the past week, UO administration reported incidents of harassment, spray painting of Johnson Hall windows and the building’s brick facade, slashed police tires and general disruption to campus events caused by strikers.
University police are investigating incidents to determine whether students will be cited for criminal charges or disciplined by the university. So far, one student has been cited for criminal charges for damaging a sign at Johnson Hall. Wade said the university is trying to keep criminal charges to a minimum.
“Our ultimate goal is to affect the students as least as possible with criminal charges,” Wade said. “We want them to be successful, so we do look for ways to utilize student conduct rather than use the criminal process.”
While students who participated in the sit-in will not be charged for trespassing, Wade said his officers will turn over their body camera footage to administrators who will decide whether students will face university disciplinary action.
The Student Workers union denied it was involved in vandalism of Johnson Hall windows. Roderique, UAW staff organizer, wrote in a statement that strikers are exercising their free speech and emotions can run high during protests.
“Our priority remains reaching a fair and respectful resolution with the University of Oregon,” Roderique said Monday.
