Frequently Asked Questions

The following FAQs will be periodically updated as negotiations continue.

Current questions

What is the current status of negotiations?

During the sixth meeting with a federal mediator on Monday, May 4, Illinois State University and AFSCME Local 1110 reached a tentative agreement.

No details of the agreement will be released until after ratification is completed.

Has Illinois State University implemented contingency plans in response to the strike?

Yes. The University is committed to minimizing any disruption to students, faculty, staff, and community members. Illinois State's contingency efforts include the use of alternate resources to perform duties normally performed by the AFSCME Local 1110 bargaining unit.

Are employees in the bargaining unit required to participate in a strike?

No. During a strike, employees represented by AFSCME Local 1110 are not required, either by law or University policy, to join in the strike, engage in any work stoppage, or join in a picket line. State law protects not only the right to strike, but also the right to refrain from doing so. It is up to each employee represented by AFSCME Local 1110 to decide whether to strike or to continue working on any given day on which the strike is occurring.

If an employee has participated in a strike, what steps are required to return to work if the strike remains ongoing?

An employee represented by AFSCME Local 1110 may choose to return to work at any time, including prior to the strike ending. No steps are required by the University, except for the employee to report to their supervisor at the beginning of their normally assigned shift.

Will employees continue to be paid if they withhold services (fail or refuse to perform work as scheduled) as a result of a strike?

No. Employees who engage in a labor strike, refuse to cross a picket line, otherwise withhold their labor, or fail to work as scheduled or assigned during a strike will not be paid for the period the employee withholds services and will not begin receiving compensation again until they return to work and begin performing their scheduled or assigned work. The University cannot provide compensation to employees unless assigned services are rendered.

Under Illinois law, public employees represented by labor organizations are permitted to strike when certain conditions preceding a strike are met, and the University will comply with all applicable requirements and principles regarding the rights of striking employees. Continuing to receive pay while withholding services in not one of those rights.

Will an employee’s benefits be impacted if they participate in a strike?

Employees eligible to participate in the State’s Group Insurance program and/or the State University Retirement System (SURS) generally retain that eligibility in the event of a strike.

Group Insurance
- Costs associated with group insurance coverage (administered by CMS) may be impacted depending on the length of the strike and the individual employee's situation. The CMS Benefits Handbook requires the following:
  - Employees in Nonpay Status
    - Employees who are in nonpay status on the first work day of a pay period will be direct billed by the Department.
    - Additionally, employees in dock/suspension status greater than 30 calendar days, regardless of whether the days were consecutive or intermittent, will be billed by the Department for every pay period in which time in nonpay status occurs.
  - These requirements apply to all time in a nonpay status, regardless of the reason the employee is in a nonpay status.

Retirement Contributions
- Employees participating in the strike will not earn service credit for those days with SURS but will still be protected for survivor and disability for the first 30 days. If the strike extends beyond 30 days or if the employee is in an unpaid status (not due to regular academic breaks) for more than 30 days in a rolling 12-month period, the employee will not be able to make contributions to SURS and employees with less than 10 years of service will lose access to survivor benefits. Contributions to the 403b or 457 retirement plans are based upon a percentage of the employee’s pay and would be reduced. Contributions made to a 457 retirement plan on a flat dollar basis may not be able to be deducted.
Benefit Accrual
- Accrual of vacation and sick leave will stop effective with the first full pay period of the strike for those employees who participate in a legal economic strike. Additionally, employees who strike will not be able to utilize accrued vacation, sick, non-accruing personal plus time, compensatory time benefits, or any other payable benefit time while striking.

Additionally, the timing of a work stoppage could also impact monthly salary disbursement for the next fiscal year.

Employees on a continuous medical leave of absence should contact their Benefits Counselor in Human Resources (438-8311) with questions.

Can employees withhold their labor outside of a legal strike?

It would be a violation of both a collective bargaining agreement and the law for any organized University employee to withhold their labor unless their union has met all requirements for a legal strike. Participants in an illegal strike (which could include, but is not limited to, actions such as failing to report for work, engaging in a work slowdown, engaging in a sympathy strike, or engaging in a “sick-out”) may be subject to disciplinary or legal sanctions.

Faculty, staff, and students in employee roles not represented by AFSCME Local 1110 are expected to perform their job duties as usual, so that the University can continue to provide service to its students, faculty, staff, and visitors. If employees, not represented by AFSCME Local 1110, engage in a sympathy/solidarity strike (i.e., fail or refuse to perform all or a portion of their job duties), the University's normal procedures governing absences or refusal to complete work remain in effect and will be applied.

During a strike, can managers require employees who are members of other unions to perform work normally performed by AFSCME 1110-represented employees?

Employees who are members of other unions can be requested to perform work normally performed by AFSCME Local 1110-represented employees but should not be required to perform this work.

Negotiations process

What is an informational picket?

An informational picket is a public demonstration by a labor union for the purpose of informing the public about a matter of concern to the Union. Informational picketing is a lawful activity that should be conducted in a peaceful manner that respects and protects the safety of both participants and all other members of our campus community. An informational picket is not a strike and all University employees participating in an informational picket are expected to continue to report for work as scheduled.

What is a strike authorization vote?

A strike authorization vote is a procedural vote by Union members regarding whether the Union will have the option to call for a strike if the parties are unable to reach agreement through negotiations. To date, the Union has not notified the University it has taken a strike authorization vote or provided the University with a Notice of Intent to Strike. Even if the Union were to take a strike authorization vote, it is important to emphasize that, while an affirmative strike authorization vote means the Union has the option to call for a strike, it does not mean they will do so.

What is a Notice of Intent to Strike?

A Notice of Intent to Strike is the legally required ten-day advance notice that a Union must provide the University and the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board in order to conduct a legal strike. A Notice of Intent to Strike does not necessarily mean the Union will strike. If the parties engage in mediation, mediation is unsuccessful, and a Notice of Intent to Strike has been provided, the Union can engage in a strike that may legally begin on or after the tenth day following the Notice of Intent to Strike, if all other legal criteria are met. To date, the Union has not provided the University with a a Notice of Intent to Strike. However, in an abundance of caution, the University has initiated contingency planning activities to ensure the University’s ability to minimize disruption should a strike occur.

What rights do employees participating in the strike have?

University employees represented by other unions or those not covered by a collective bargaining agreement may contemplate sympathy or solidarity strikes; however, only employees covered under the AFSCME Local 1110 bargaining unit may lawfully strike. Employees represented by AFSCME Local 1110:

have the right to picket and demonstrate without disrupting instruction, research, administration, or other University activities;
have the right to work, or to strike;
who choose to strike will not be paid or be able to utilize pay replacement benefits, such as vacation time and sick time while striking;
who choose to work and not strike will continue to be paid.

Is there any additional information regarding campus impacts should an employee union engage in a legal economic strike?

Additional information can be found in the Union Strike FAQs.

Background of negotiations

Who is part of the Local 1110 bargaining unit?

AFSCME Local 1110 represents approximately 350 employees at Illinois State University’s Normal, Illinois, campus, primarily in janitorial, grounds, and dining positions.

Why are Illinois State University and AFSCME currently in negotiations?

The contract between Illinois State University and AFSCME Local 1110 expired June 30, 2025, and the parties are negotiating wages and other terms and conditions of employment for a successor agreement. The contract has been automatically extended during negotiations for the successor agreement.

This is a normal part of the labor-management relationship. Collective bargaining agreements are contracts entered into between management and unions, which delineate wages and other terms and conditions of employment for a specific period of time. When that time ends, it is normal for the parties to negotiate over the terms of a successor agreement.

When did negotiations begin?

The first negotiation session was held on April 3, 2025. To date, the parties have held 31 negotiation sessions, including five mediation sessions.

What led the parties to mutually request mediation?

When the parties mutually requested mediation on December 1, 2025, the parties had reached tentative agreements on 17 items and only economic proposals remained open. To be clear, the parties were not at impasse when they mutually agreed to request mediation. However, after 26 negotiation sessions, both parties felt the guidance of an independent, impartial mediator could help continue to move negotiations forward in a productive manner and help the parties reach a contract agreement that reflects the needs of all Illinois State University stakeholders as promptly as reasonably possible.