EIU Faculty, Staff to Go On Strike Thursday Morning

A strike at Eastern Illinois University is scheduled to begin on Thursday morning.

More than 95% of the membership of Local 4100 of the EIU University Professionals of Illinois, represented by the Illinois Federation of Teachers, surveyed Tuesday night, endorsed the option to declare a strike.

An eight-hour bargaining session Tuesday failed to produce an agreement. Compensation and workload are the remaining issues on the table.

The president of the local, Jennifer Stringfellow, said, "We are still very far apart on key financial issues." 

Negotiators for the union are also accusing the university bargainers of "walking away from the bargaining table."

The union and university have been bargaining for more than a year. Faculty and staff have been working without a contract since September.