Indiana University Bloomington graduate students started a three-day strike Wednesday for union recognition by the university.
Many graduate instructors canceled classes for the day and gathered at Ballantine Hall on IU Bloomington's campus to protest.
The group also wants higher wages.
Read more: IU grad workers propose 3-day strike for higher pay, union recognition
Sabina Ali is a graduate student in religious studies and organizer with the graduate workers coalition. The group sent a letter to IU President Pamela Whitten earlier this year with their demands and didn’t get a response.
“The only thing that has worked for us in getting any kind of wage increases is a strike."
In 2022, about 1,000 students went on strike for four weeks. Later that year, Whitten and IU Provost Rahul Shrivastav raised the minimum pay for Student Academic Appointees by 46 percent to $22,000.
Ali says the increase was a huge improvement, but cost of living has increased in the last couple years.
"IU loves to talk about, diversity and put people on their brochures about how diverse IU is," Ali said. "But they need to also support students from first generation families, from historically disadvantaged families and stop acting like graduate education is actually accessible when you're asked to live on $22,000 a year for five, six, seven years of your life."
Ali said if the university does not respond to their requests, graduate workers plan to strike again in the fall.
Mark Bode, and IU spokesperson, said in a statement that The IU Board of Trustees made it clear that existing channels of shared governance and collaboration are the best ways to improve graduate education at IU.
He added since 2021 the university has prioritized addressing Student Academic Appointees' concerns. With raises in the last two years, IU Bloomington increased their minimum stipends by more than 50 percent.
Bode said the university also eliminated mandatory graduate student and course-specific fees. For a 20-hour-per week appointment SAA stipend, the minimum compensation will be $23,000 in addition to health insurance and fee remission.
SAA stipends will be discussed regularly with its affairs committee and Bloomington Faculty Council so that minimum stipends are in the top half of Big Ten schools.
This story has been updated.
