SPRINGFIELD, IL — A strike was averted at the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS) after the university and the full-time nontenure-track faculty union, UIS Instructors United (UISIU), reached a tentative agreement on March 19. The resolution followed over a year of intense negotiations.

Scott Fenton, an English instructor at UIS and a member of the union’s negotiating team, expressed relief, stating in a union press release, “Our union negotiating team is glad to announce that we were able to reach a tentative contract agreement with UIS Chancellor Janet Gooch and her team.” The deal prevents a walkout that was authorized by union members on February 27, which could have taken place as early as March 18.

Chancellor Gooch also acknowledged the significance of the agreement in her email announcement, saying, “I am grateful to all parties who worked on this inaugural contract for our valued non-tenure track faculty members. We look forward to continuing to work together to fulfill our university’s mission.”

The lengthy negotiations, which began more than a year ago, faced significant hurdles, including a call for mediation to ensure both sides bargained in good faith. The UISIU expressed frustration with the process, noting that the administration’s approach led to distrust between the two parties.

John Miller, president of the University Professionals of Illinois (UPI 4100), criticized the university administration, saying, “It is truly disappointing though that, once again, U of I leaders took an unnecessarily contentious approach to bargaining those sowed seeds of distrust between the union and administration.”

Before reaching the agreement, the union had made it clear that it was ready to act. On February 28, union members gathered for a rally outside the University Hall Building to show solidarity ahead of a key bargaining session. Then, on March 7, the union issued a formal notice of intent to strike, stating they could legally strike as early as March 18. The union’s primary grievances centered around job security and workload issues, which they felt had not been addressed after extensive bargaining sessions.

Fenton commented on the union’s frustration, saying, “After a year of bargaining and multiple sessions with a federal mediator, Chancellor Gooch and her administration have clearly not heard us as faculty and still refuse to make reasonable movement on job security and workload issues.”

In the face of the looming strike, Chancellor Gooch expressed disappointment in the union’s decision to file the strike notice, especially with additional bargaining sessions scheduled for March 14 and 18. While the March 14 sessions showed some signs of progress, no agreement was reached, leaving both parties with one final scheduled bargaining session on March 20.

However, a deal was struck just before the scheduled session on March 19, following an extended negotiation period over March 18-19. The public details of the agreement will be released in the coming weeks as both the union and the university work through the process of finalizing the three-year contract. UISIU members are set to vote on the deal once it is approved by university leadership and the union membership.

This agreement at UIS comes amidst a broader trend of labor unrest at Illinois universities. On March 21, faculty at Illinois State University (ISU) filed their own notice of intent to strike, with a potential strike date set for April 4. While UIS has narrowly avoided a strike, other campuses in Illinois are facing similar tensions between faculty and administration over issues like job security and benefits.

As UIS moves forward, the outcome of the UISIU contract agreement will likely set a precedent for how labor negotiations will unfold at Illinois universities in the months ahead.

Photographs by Lilian Georgiou from the February 28 rally.