UIC Illegally Retaliates Against Grad Worker for OIS Complaint 

August 5th, 2024

International workers at UIC face unique challenges, from extra taxes and fees to an opaque and burdensome bureaucracy. But events this past month have demonstrated that when workers bravely assert their rights in this process, the university has no qualms responding with heavy-handed and downright illegal suppression.

Here's what's happened: OIS failed to inform a worker of a missing part of his visa extension application. As a result, his application for a visa extension was denied. This cost the worker his legal status, meaning the loss of his employment too. Upon hearing the news, he went to OIS in person to register a complaint about how their negligence resulted in his loss of employment and risk of deportation. OIS responded by calling the police to remove him. But that wasn't enough: they followed up one week later by filing a disciplinary hearing with Student Affairs, alleging his angry tone was a violation of university policy.

It's our position that, given 1) how international workers' employment is conditional on immigration paperwork , and 2) the CBA establishes international workers' rights to accommodation when encountering difficulties with documentation, every worker's interaction with OIS are protected by labor law and subject to union intervention when members' rights have been violated. So upon receiving this report, the union made very clear to the administration that workers have a right to a protected grievance process, the first step of which includes making an informal complaint. Union members are contractually protected against reprisal or discipline for participating in this process. By punishing the worker for his complaint, administration is blatantly retaliating against a worker in violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and state labor law. But though we warned the university that proceeding with the disciplinary hearing would violate this worker’s rights, the administration did not even dignify this with a response.

During the hearing itself, administration confirmed that they had received the warning and proceeded anyway. Furthermore, they denied the union representative the right to speak (even to ask questions), even after it was made clear that this would violate the worker’s Weingarten rights (ie., the right to union representation, which generally interpreted includes the right to ask clarifying questions and otherwise support and guide the worker). By silencing the union representative, administration further obstructs the union from exercising its rights under labor law.

The worker was speaking out against an injustice: OIS’ institutional negligence that routinely causes undue stress and hardship for international workers, and all too often results in lost wages and even missing appointments. When workers assert their rights, admin is clearly threatened - enough to send in police to discipline workers into compliance.

While we witness a disturbing surge of xenophobic paranoia, anti-immigrant discrimination and violence, and ongoing mass deportations, our university administration chooses to double down on the marginalization and exploitation of international workers. Is this how chancellor Miranda plans to realize her commitment to “reflect and respond to the increasing diversity of the U.S. in a rapidly globalizing world?” By punishing international workers who stand up for their rights?

This union has zero tolerance for mistreatment and abuse of our international coworkers, and we’re going to confront this injustice head on. 

If you want to support this campaign, or report your own experiences as an international worker, reach out to us here.