On Tuesday afternoon, a delegation of grad workers + president of UVA StudCo met with Provost Baucom and 2 Vice Provosts. We began the meeting by telling stories about being chronically underpaid, leaving health problems untreated, using community resources to fill pay gaps.

Living paycheck to paycheck, as many of us do, is what makes a late payment really sting; one grad worker, Crystalina Peterson, and her family haven’t bought groceries in two weeks because of the delay.

After these vivid illustrations, we presented our demands: 1. Immediate payment of all missing stipends; 2. A one-step, simple-to-access fund to cover any late fees; and 3. Concrete steps to ensure that this chronic problem never happens again.

In response, Baucom committed to making all late payments; and making grad workers whole from fines & penalties, but w/o committing to either a timeline or to a simple process, as we’ve emphasized.

Baucom also committed to resolving the problem before the next round of stipends is set up this summer and this situation could possibly recur & re-stated his intention to form a task force.

We’re cautiously optimistic about task force & process for grad workers to receive funds for late fees. We are encouraged by Provost’s response, but we know that bc confidence in system is low, the process for reimbursement can't be burdensome–otherwise, it’s no remedy at all.

UVA’s willingness to concretely address this chronic problem is a direct result of us standing together and demanding better. In the past, grad workers who noticed missing payments have been told they would have to simply wait for the next pay period.

In this meeting, Provost Baucom suggested solutions that would require resources, such as trainings for staff or implementation of an entirely new payment system. That is what we must hold them to: Taking this seriously means investing resources. Onwards. #CutTheChecks

@UCWVAUVA Any way we can monetarily support folks who are struggling bc of late checks?