Support Our Fight for Better Pandemic Safety Policies at WMU

Western Michigan University Administration

Western Michigan University has an obligation to protect the health and safety of its faculty, staff, and students during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Rather than being a leader in safety measures, it seems WMU has chosen to rely on unclear and inadequate policies that put finances over safety.

The Teaching Assistants Union (TAU, AFT #1729, AFL-CIO), the Professional Instructors Organization (PIO AFT #1903, AFL-CIO), AFSCME Local 1668, and full-time faculty have all called on administration to collaborate on these issues to ensure safe working and learning environments for all WMU community members. These calls for collaboration have been met with rigidity and an unwillingness to adapt to the changing conditions of the pandemic.

WMU is creating a financial hardship for its community members by charging vaccinated individuals $50 to be tested and no longer conducting contact tracing, making it more challenging to track the spread of the virus on campus. WMU's policies fail to incorporate all of the CDC guidelines currently in place for institutions of higher education, placing students, faculty, and staff at risk.

Voice your support for more common sense safety policies by signing your name below!

In the "organization" field, please let us know if/how you are affiliated with WMU. For example, "WMU Student", "WMU Faculty", "Family Member", "Kalamazoo Resident", or "Concerned Ally".

To: Western Michigan University Administration
From: [Your Name]

Dear WMU Administration:

Scientists and leading health experts all agree: the COVID-19 pandemic is not over. While I wish we could return to normal operations, the safety of students, faculty, and staff cannot be comprised in an effort to do so.

I urge you to put safety over revenue and to listen to the voices of WMU community members by meeting with the leadership of the unions on campus to discuss and implement safety protocols that are in line with CDC guidelines for institutions of higher education. I call on you to provide faculty, staff, and students with access to PPE in classrooms that is necessary for their safety. The policies and safety measures proposed by the campus community are common sense steps that can be taken to make WMU safer until the pandemic is behind us.