GEO Grievance Wins $1,630
Grievance Win!
Due to an error from HR, a graduate worker was mistakenly assigned to a .25 TA appointment and a .25 RA appointment when the department meant to assign them to one .50 TA appointment. This led to miscommunication between the grievant and the supervisor, which led to multiple weeks of overwork.
When grievance committee got involved, the department remedied the error to make the position a .50 TA appointment, but refused to compensate the grievant for weeks of overwork on the grounds that the RA supervisor never assigned work to the grievant. Despite the grievant spending multiple hours each week working on research, the department argued that this work wasn't valid since the RA supervisor didn't explicitly assign it. After appealing this decision through the grievance process and informing the University we intended to arbitrate this decision, the University decided to settle with the Grievant for $1,630.60 in backpay.
Grievant Testimonial
The grievant said this about working with GEO to resolve this issue:
"Working with GEO was extremely helpful and I was fortunate enough to work with an amazing team to deal with this grievance. They helped in fighting at every step for me, easing any fears or anxieties I had by keeping me updated, as well as their veracity in investigating the issue. The grievance committee helped navigate how we needed to proceed through the grievance process as well as supporting me in each meeting with the university to make sure our demands would be met. I am not sure I could have done anything without GEO and their grievance committee, and I hope everyone who has similar grievances or issues feels comfortable enough to rely on them."