system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Exploitation of grad students or am I just overreacting?

Most of the phd students at our institute are in a graduate program and have to gather credit points. One of the things they have to do is organizing 'social activities', e.g. organizing colloquia, gatherings of students etc. In the last three years however this wasn't once the case and credit points are usually awarded for 'volunteering' to set up the equipment for talks and seminars or being a member of the phd representatives. Generally it's stuff that PI's / the institutes administration doesn't want to. Usually it consists of simple tasks that take max. 1hr / 2 weeks.

Yesterday however, phd students were asked by email to help with an institute seminar by:

* Coming in on the weekend for 2 days x 8 hours
* Preparing coffee, lunch, set up of beamers etc.
* Do the dishes, clean everything

The students do not take part in said seminar.

Is this normal for graduate programs? Personally I come from a background where phd students don't have graduate programs and do not need to gather credit points. Asking them to come in over the weekend to do catering for something they have no relation too would have garnered rather serious questions about ones mental health.

What would you do? Shall I talk to the person offering this 'activities' and tell him I think it's a disgrace to ask people to work for essentially free. Go directly to the program manager and ask him what the academic goal of these exercises are? Or just ask the students if they would help me wash my car and do my dishes.... I would throw in some credit points on top and even a free pizza (seriously, it's so unimaginable for me to ask for something like this I still think it's a very convincing joke). Otherwise I could just ignore it. If the phd students don't speak up why should I?

Any thoughts on this?
gpt
The fact that you have identified this situation as potentially exploitative is an excellent reminder of the relative powerlessness of graduate students. It can be surpassingly difficult for a student to question his or her supervising faculty, and the repercussions of offending or hurting the program manager's feelings can be dire if access to these opportunities are necessary for successful completion of the program. This is why vulnerable populations need advocates in positions of power. It is also why you should speak up, even if the PhD students don't.