The Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO)--made up of graduate workers across departments--is interested in hearing from graduate workers about their priorities related to international worker protections. Additionally, we want to learn what actions GEO members are willing to take for those protections to be won. Please note that you do NOT need to be a member of GEO or an international worker to take this survey; you just need to be a grad student.

In addition to this survey, GEO is hosting an International Workers Town Hall on September 29th from 5:30-7:30 PM in the Channing Murray Chapel. We encourage international and immigrant workers to attend and discuss how ongoing changes to immigration policy are affecting them and to share opinions on how GEO can best support them. During the town hall, we will briefly overview GEO's proposed contract and break into small-group discussions to understand which items matter most to international and immigrant workers.

The Solidarity Committee operates an International and Immigration Working Group. The Immigration Working Group’s mission is to advocate for the university to take its responsibility to protect international and immigrant workers seriously. This group works to meet international and immigrant workers where they are with the purpose of breaking down policy changes and rights information, alongside gathering perspective on what contract protections they need most during bargaining. IWG is open to both domestic and international students! If you are interested in getting involved, please fill out this interest form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSete2zm_11QoGK7CTGceRViUu85qXnuh9k2zSRJM_SP5War_w/viewform?usp=dialog

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1. Name

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3. Phone Number

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5. Are you a current GEO member? (This means you have signed a membership card.)

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6. Are you a current international student/worker?

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7. Below is a list of the international worker protections GEO proposed in our initial contract, which we presented to university administration in April To help the union identify which issue(s) to prioritize going forward, please rank the following issues in order of importance with #1 being most important, and #9 being least important.

GEO proposed the items listed above because we believe international workers deserve protections in their contract, but no win in the contract is guaranteed. Although bargaining sessions are important for contract negotiation, what truly helps us win what we deserve is union presence and activity on campus. If we never use our collective power, we will never benefit from our collective organizing. The following questions will ask you about your willingness to engage in activities in order to win the contract we deserve. Some may be "cold" actions that are less intensive, while some escalate towards "hot" actions that are more intense. In all of GEO's history, international workers being GEO members has never caused any security issues, and academic unions are largely going unnoticed by current administrative proceedings. International workers make up the majority of graduate workers on campus - you are not alone. Because winning the contract we deserve requires collective effort and we are asking you to indicate your willingness to engage in that collective effort, we may be contacting you regarding upcoming events and programs related to the issues listed in this survey. When we fight, we win.

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8. In order to win language to clarify examptions from the English Oral Proficiency test and require the university to provide materials to exam takers, I would...

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9. In order to win language to designate what private workspaces are (ICE cannot enter private spaces without a judicial warrant), I would...

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10. In order to win protections from ICE/CBP, I would...

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11. In order to win the required use of Illini Alert if ICE is in the area, I would...

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12. In order to win implementing a $1M International Graduate Worker Assistance Fund, I would...

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13. In order to win a commitment from the University to not willingly send Grad workers information to governmental agencies without lawful order, I would...

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14. In order to win a reimbursement for the SEVIS fee, I would...

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15. In order to win new language for paid time off for immigration-related issues, I would...

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16. In order to win new language committing the university to informing the Union of SEVIS changes, work authorization revocations, warrants, and detainments on campus, I would...

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17. As per the GEO's constitution, GEO is a social justice union. Are there any communities or issues that you believe should be considered closely or addressed when considering international worker protections?

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18. Do you have any additional comments or concerns that you would like to share? Are there questions asked in the survey that you would like to answer in more detail? If so, please do so here.

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19. Are you interested in being contacted in the future regarding this survey (e.g. for testimonials for bargaining, interviews, social media posts, etc.)?

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20. Would you be interested in attending the International Workers Town Hall on September 29th from 5:30-7:30 PM in the Channing Murray Chapel to further discuss items in this survey?

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21. One of the simplest and best ways to support the efforts of your union is to sign a membership card. The number of members GEO has directly impacts the strength of our power, especially as we are bargaining for our next contract and fighting for workers' rights. To join your fellow graduate workers in improving our working conditions, become a member (if you are not one already). You are welcome and encouraged to read additional information on Membership Dues before signing a card: https://www.uiucgeo.org/join

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