Give the BOT a message

Another announcement from the SIUC Labor Coalition.

The SIUC Labor Coalition, comprised of all four locals on the SIUC campus, is organizing a collective action for Thursday, July 14th. On that day the SIU Board of Trustees will be meeting at approximately 10:00 in Ballroom B of the Student Center. Our plan is to gather in the lobby outside the ballrooms at 9:45 am. From there, we will go into the ballroom together, take seats, and hold up signs that simply say the number "379." As of July 14th, this will be the number of days that SIUC employees will have been working without a contract. One person will be designated to hold up a larger sign that reads "How Many Days Without a Contract?" 

The public comment portion of the meeting is scheduled for approximately 10:30 (the schedule is not always exact, so please allow for the possibility that it may happen a bit later). At that time, a Labor Coalition spokesperson will read a public statement to the BOT on behalf of all four IEA locals. The statement will convey our concerns about the gravity of the labor crisis at SIUC and our sincere hope that the BOT will join with us in preserving collective bargaining rights on our campus. At the end of the public comment portion of the meeting, we'll distribute copies of the statement to fellow audience members, board members, and the press. 

We are asking everyone to wear black to this action as a show of solidarity. Please help spread the word about this action and attend if at all possible. It is crucial that we show the Board that union power on this campus is strong.

Labor Film Series

The IEA unions on campus are sponsoring a film series at the Varsity. Here's their announcement:

The SIUC Labor Coalition, representing all four IEA locals on campus, is very pleased to announce a film series entitled "Viewing Issues of Labor and Capital." The series will feature three film screenings and follow-up discussions (along with refreshments!) on three Sunday afternoons over the next three months: July 17, August 14, and September 18. All screenings will be held at the Varsity Center for the Arts at 2 pm. The films to be screened are:

• July 17: Bread and Roses: based upon the fight by industrial workers (SEIU) in Los Angeles for better working conditions and the right to unionize
• August 14: Inside Job: an award-winning documentary on the inner workings of the economic meltdown of 2008
• Sept 18: Struggles in Steel: African American steel workers speak about their struggle for fair treatment in the steel industry

Attached is a flyer about the series which you should feel free to distribute to friends, neighbors, and family. Our hope is that the film screening can create a community space where we can gather to discuss the current labor crisis at SIUC, its broader social and political context, and the history of labor of which it is a part.

Please mark these dates on your calendar and help spread the word about the series! We look forward to seeing you at the Varsity. 


Flier after the break.

The gods of management

Laura Dreuth Zeman suggested the following bit of summer reading in the theology of management.  The article sounds fascinating (though, being on vacation, I will own to not having read it myself).  Laura's summary follows, continued after the break, and the article is embedded at the end.

The article is titled “Archetypes of destruction: Notes on the impact of distorted management theory on education communities,” by Mark Chater of Bishop Grosseteste College in the UK. Bishop uniquely merges Jungian archetypal psychoanalytical theory with public education management theory. He describes conflicts in management, or mismanagement as he refers to it, in public education by drawing parallels to two mythic deities of mismanagement, Systemania, the god of “distorted change” creating public educational settings that are in “permanent and uncontrolled change,” and Permacrisis, the “god of employee destruction brought on by fear.” These parallels to SIUC and “archetypally unhealthy management,” may solicit a reaction that is a delicate blend of comic and tragic.

Campus Tour

Ok, from my secure undisclosed vacation I've been able to access stirring video of the campus tour from July 1 here:


http://thesouthern.com/vmix_98e3b050-a465-11e0-bbbc-001cc4c002e0.html


I paste in the text of the tour after the break.  The tone is obviously tongue in cheek but the facts are, well, facts.