A group of 40 striking graduate student instructors and staff assistants at the University of Michigan Taubman College have reportedly had their April wages taken from them in response to their participation in a campus-wide movement that has sought improved working conditions and better pay for workers.

The school’s retaliatory move was met with ire, with the strike now going on for nearly a month. Protestors have already been met with police violence and say the University’s latest tactic constitutes an escalation in the midst of bargaining efforts that are, for now, ostensibly stalled.

Solidarity! Here are striking international grads picketing at Taubman College right this moment. Their chants are streaming into the architecture studios. pic.twitter.com/DoPQoretgk
— Grad Employees' Org UMich #OnStrike (@geo3550) April 26, 2023

In an open letter to Taubman's Dean Jonathan Massey, supporters of the strike wrote, “Such retaliation is wrong. Taubman College’s leadership should come out against such cruel forms of retaliation and support the striking graduate workers in their fight to win affordability, dignity, and a safe workplace for themselves and the wider community.”

The Architecture Lobby, a regular champion of equitable labor, has shared its support for improved fair wages in Ann Arbor and two other UofM campuses. Student instructors and staff assistants report their desire to obtain not only increased pay towards a living wage but also better access to healthcare in addition to improved campus safety and access to graduate education for people from marginalized backgrounds. 

University officials are digging in and now involving the courts to bring an end to the strike as student instructors begin the strategic withholding of grades. Amir Fleischmann, a Ph.D. candidate, graduate student instructor, and member of the graduate workers' union, shared with InsideHigherEd.com, “We see this as a big point of our leverage.” 

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Representing the striking graduate students and staff assistants is the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO), an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers. According to Fleischmann and InsideHigherEd.com, "GEO isn’t planning to disrupt graduation." However, "We’ve made it clear to the students this year that even if there are even further delays for some reason in grades, it won’t affect their ability to participate in commencement," he added. A comprehensive list of demands from the GEO can be found here.

In a statement to Democracy Now!, Fleischmann shared, "Over the past three years, we’ve seen the gap between our salary and the cost of living triple. This is something that’s being felt by workers all across the country, where corporate profits are at record highs, CEOs are getting humongous bonuses and even bigger salaries, while workers are being left to struggle and to take scraps. Workers at the University of Michigan are saying enough is enough, and that’s why we’re on strike.”