SIU-Edwardsville faculty considering unionization

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (AP) - Some Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville faculty members say they are considering organizing a union because of budget woes and potential layoffs.

The Intelligencer in Edwardsville reports (http://bit.ly/1MyvbZe) that about 400 tenure-track faculty members have formed the Faculty Association. The tenure-track professors are the largest group on campus not represented by a union.

Faculty Association co-chairman Charles Berger says university administration aren't the problem. He says it's Springfield, which "is holding the budget hostage and forcing cuts."

Berger said if the situation doesn't improve, there will be "profound effects on the quality of education at SIUE and schools throughout the state."

Illinois Education Association official Michael McDermott says if a minimum of 30-percent of the faculty members show interest in unionizing, it would force a faculty vote.

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Information from: Edwardsville Intelligencer, http://www.goedwardsville.com