ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Graduate students who teach at the University of Michigan returned to classes Thursday after voting to end a strike.
The Graduate Employees’ Organization, which represents about 2,000 students who teach or assist, said it achieved “critical progress” on child care options during the coronavirus pandemic, COVID-19 testing protocols and concerns about campus police operations.
READ MORE: ‘Pray Day on the Highway’ Draws Clergy, Community to Silence Road ViolenceThe vote Wednesday was 1,074-239, the union said. The strike began Sept. 8.
The deal ends legal action taken by the university, which sued this week to try to end the strike.
READ MORE: Governor Whitmer Announces Loosening COVID-19 Restrictions On Restaurants and Gatherings“By withholding our labor, building coalitions, and making our power impossible to ignore, we forced the university to give us an offer with substantive progress toward a safe and just campus,” the union said.
The university said the strike disrupted many online undergraduate classes taught by graduate students.
MORE NEWS: Michigan Reports 1,067 New COVID-19 Cases, 24 Deaths Tuesday© 2020 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.