Members of the Graduate Employees’ Organization, or GEO, voted Friday to ratify a new five-year contract. The contract puts an end to the nearly two-week-long strike that cancelled hundreds of classes and caused dozens more to be relocated.
GEO co-president Gus Wood says they weren’t going to give up until they got guaranteed tuition waivers for all graduate workers.
“We demanded a fair contract and we ended up with a very good contract that went above and beyond what we initially set out to get.” Wood says.
The new contract comes with additional provisions, including a wage increase, lower health insurance costs, and more flexible parental leave. Among the concessions to the university, the contract allows some flexibility for departments to create new revenue-generating programs.
The University issued a statement saying the new contract finds common ground between administrators and the GEO.