LEOunion.org

Ann Arbor Rally Photos

LEO members, students, and other supporters stage a rally outside the Fleming Building on April 8.

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"It looked like a huge LEO birthday party!"

Ignoring bellicose warnings from the university administration to halt its informational activities, and a persistent rain, LEO  forged ahead with its plans on Wednesday.  On the UM-Dearborn campus, those plans included the distribution of over 400 balloons and fliers.  Students carried the bright yellow balloons all over campus.  There were hundreds tied to everything in the UC, CASL and Science Buildings.  "It looked like a huge LEO birthday party," one member commented.  Students and staff were very supportive.  Several students complained of cut class offerings and bloated administration.  LEO events will continue on Thursday, April 8, with a noon-time rally at the Fleming Building in Ann Arbor.   In the meantime, the student coalition on the Ann Arbor campus has put together an online petition for undergraduates to sign in support of LEO. 

On Tuesday, March 30, Dearborn was honored with a pesentation on the health care changes.

To make a long story short, anyone less than 80% will be hit the hardest with the increase. But even the presenter mentioned that "this will have to be bargained" in the next contract round. Even though the Adminstration made a point of the fact that "the lowest paid will pay less than the higher paid," they were not counting "part-timers." And the highest band was set at around $50,000, which means someone making $50,000 would see the same increase as someone making $150,000.

I will curtail my sarcastic comments for once, but something does not seem right!

Dearborn employees, including LEO faculty,  are entitled to the same FASAP (Faculty and Staff Assistance Program) services as employees in Ann Arbor. (You can obtain services at any FASAP location regardless of which campus you work on.) 

I think the main web page does a much better job detailing the services and offerings than Dearborn's page.

Main: http://www.umich.edu/~fasap/index.html

Dearborn: http://www.umd.umich.edu/support/fasap.html

There are quite a few different programs available to us that we are not always aware of.  Please see the websites for further information.

As a LEO member, you should check with your union representative about whether your UM supervisor can get away with the latest dubious practice of the day.  It may well come down to what the collective bargaining agreement says.

But it helps to know your rights in general. To provide wide-ranging information about workplace rights and rules, the Interfaith Worker Justice organization has created a website, "Can My Boss Do That?",  to answer that very question.

The site covers such topics as work rules, types of workers, getting hired and fired, worker safety, and protecting your rights.  There is also an extended section for workers who are facing a job loss. Check it out at http://canmybossdothat.com/.