MLRC clears GEO on labor complaints

by Daniel J. Fitzgibbons and Sarah R. Buchholz, Chronicle staff

he Massachusetts Labor Relations Commission on Wednesday this week determined that the Graduate Employee Organization did not encourage or condone a sick-out by graduate student instructors in the Division of Continuing Education on Aug. 16-17.

      The commission also ruled that GEO did not violate the law by encouraging graduate student instructors to turn in grades five hours after the July 18 deadline for Continuing Education's first summer session.

     Both incidents prompted the University to seek a commission investigation into whether GEO violated state law by encouraging or condoning a strike, work stoppage, slowdown or withholding of services.

     In its report, the commission ruled that since others have turned in grades after past deadlines, the University does not require them to be submitted on time. Therefore, the GEO grade embargo was not illegal, according to the commission.

     Regarding the sick-out, Associate Chancellor Susan Pearson said, "The commission cited evidence that the union had planned a sick-out but then came to the puzzling conclusion that the one that occurred had not been encouraged or condoned by them."
Pearson cited the MLRC report: "In the days prior to August 16, 2001, [union president James] Shaw had two or three conversations with Union Vice President Leslie Edwards regarding the subject of a sick-out. Edwards told Shaw words to the effect of, 'We are thinking of having a sick-out. What do you think?' Shaw replied that in his opinion it was a 'bad idea.' Shaw also knew that Edwards had been talking to GSIs [graduate student instructors] about the possibility of a sick-out, and Shaw believed that those discussions were related to the Union's fight for recognition of Division GSIs. Shaw took no steps to discourage a sick-out other than telling Edwards he thought it was a bad idea."

     "Nonetheless," Pearson said, "the commission concluded that, 'We need not decide here whether the calling in sick of seven instructors on August 16 and 17 constituted a strike under Section 9A of the Law because we do not find that the Union induced, encouraged or condoned five instructors on August 16 and two instructors on August 17 to participate in a sick-out.'"

     Shaw lauded the commission report.

     "We're certainly happy with the decision," he said. "We think they made some strong comments, especially about the grade delay. The decision says that it was a legal activity, and this is a good indication that what the University has been up to in the past couple of weeks amounts to nothing more or less than intimidation of graduate employees trying to form a union."

     He added, "This is a strong statement to the University that they should back off on disciplining people for the alleged 'sick-out.' UMass should not be removing its most talented instructors from the classroom to fight union organizing."

     Pearson said that the seven who called in sick were asked to make up the missed classes. All of the students declined to meet with Pearson to explain their absences and have been notified that their pay will be docked. She has offered the students another opportunity to meet about the matter, she said.

     Pearson noted that the sick-out negatively affected students who paid fees for the courses and expressed the hope that graduate instructors would in the future honor their obligations to the students and fulfill the terms of their employment contracts.