TAA Mutual Aid Fund for Grad Workers and Families
Donation protected
Union family-
The historical moment we’re in is one that requires nothing less than full solidarity. When so much around us is uncertain, we need to know that we can turn to one another for support, for comfort, and for action. The TAA has proudly fought for and alongside our most vulnerable colleagues, and this moment requires us to reaffirm that commitment.
As part of the TAA’s broader commitment to supporting or most vulnerable and precarious, we have set up a Mutual Aid Fund where graduate student employees can request aid to respond to an urgent financial need. This fund has been seeded with contributions from three incredible members who wanted to see the TAA act to relieve immediate financial needs for its members, and even more have contributed to this Go Fund Me since it went live on Saturday, March 21.
The university acted graciously to ensure continuity of pay for some, but not all, graduate workers. Their Employee Leave Policy explicitly leaves out student hourly staff, a subset of graduate workers who are particularly vulnerable because in many cases their work is entirely on-campus and because they do not receive tuition remission. We recently learned that hourly library workers have been laid off. Further, the university has closed all on-campus childcare facilities, leaving graduate student parents with potentially unstable childcare plans while pursuing their degree and teaching classes. This poses an immense barrier to continuity of instruction and research for such student workers, and we need to rally support for them.
If you are able, please consider donating to this fund to ensure that our colleagues, co-workers, friends, comrades in financially uncertain times can be supported.
And any UW grad student can apply for funds at http://bit.ly/TAAmutualaid.
FAQ about Mutual Aid Fund requests: https://bit.ly/TAAMAFdetails.
This GoFundMe account is run by Jon Isaac, the treasurer for the Teaching Assistants' Association. The funds raised through this campaign will be used to disburse cash relief to struggling grad workers who apply for funds at the above bit.ly link. Once a grad applies for funds, Jon will reach out to them and fulfill their request either through Venmo or PayPal, as they indicate when filling out the request form. The disbursed funds can be used by these grads on anything to get them through this moment of crisis—rent, utilities, groceries, childcare, etc.
The historical moment we’re in is one that requires nothing less than full solidarity. When so much around us is uncertain, we need to know that we can turn to one another for support, for comfort, and for action. The TAA has proudly fought for and alongside our most vulnerable colleagues, and this moment requires us to reaffirm that commitment.
As part of the TAA’s broader commitment to supporting or most vulnerable and precarious, we have set up a Mutual Aid Fund where graduate student employees can request aid to respond to an urgent financial need. This fund has been seeded with contributions from three incredible members who wanted to see the TAA act to relieve immediate financial needs for its members, and even more have contributed to this Go Fund Me since it went live on Saturday, March 21.
The university acted graciously to ensure continuity of pay for some, but not all, graduate workers. Their Employee Leave Policy explicitly leaves out student hourly staff, a subset of graduate workers who are particularly vulnerable because in many cases their work is entirely on-campus and because they do not receive tuition remission. We recently learned that hourly library workers have been laid off. Further, the university has closed all on-campus childcare facilities, leaving graduate student parents with potentially unstable childcare plans while pursuing their degree and teaching classes. This poses an immense barrier to continuity of instruction and research for such student workers, and we need to rally support for them.
If you are able, please consider donating to this fund to ensure that our colleagues, co-workers, friends, comrades in financially uncertain times can be supported.
And any UW grad student can apply for funds at http://bit.ly/TAAmutualaid.
FAQ about Mutual Aid Fund requests: https://bit.ly/TAAMAFdetails.
This GoFundMe account is run by Jon Isaac, the treasurer for the Teaching Assistants' Association. The funds raised through this campaign will be used to disburse cash relief to struggling grad workers who apply for funds at the above bit.ly link. Once a grad applies for funds, Jon will reach out to them and fulfill their request either through Venmo or PayPal, as they indicate when filling out the request form. The disbursed funds can be used by these grads on anything to get them through this moment of crisis—rent, utilities, groceries, childcare, etc.
Organizer
Treasurer TAA
Organizer
Madison, WI