What to know about the Cal State faculty strikes
Thousands of faculty members at the nation’s largest four-year public university system are canceling classes this week and staging rolling strikes as they demand higher wages and better working conditions.
The California Faculty Associationwhich represents 29,000 employees in the California State University system, announced a series of one-day actions on four campuses: Faculty at Cal Poly Pomona walked outside yesterdayToday, workers at San Francisco State are striking and work stoppages are planned for Cal State Los Angeles on Wednesday and Sacramento State on Thursday.
It’s been a particularly busy year for labor actions, especially in California. Hollywood actors and writers went on strike; so did hotel and healthcare workers. Los Angeles school staff staged a major strike in March, and Oakland teachers were absent for nearly two weeks in May.
Here’s what you need to know about the Cal State strikes.
Who is on strike?
The California Faculty Association represents the professors, lecturers, librarians, advisors and coaches who work on Cal State’s 23 campuses, which serve nearly 460,000 students.
The strikes are taking place at four of the largest campuses in the system, which together enroll nearly a quarter of all Cal State students. Not all faculty members are part of the strikes, but for those who are, classes for the day are canceled.
The actions are intended to let university system leadership know that the union can quickly organize its members for job action if necessary. Kevin Wehr, chairman of the union’s bargaining team and professor at Sacramento State, told CalMatters.
“We are going to show them that we can close any campus we want with just a few weeks’ notice,” Wehr told the outlet.
Another union, Teamsters Local 2010, which represents 1,100 electricians, plumbers and other professionals who work for Cal State, struck with faculty this week. The Teamsters’ contract negotiations with the university are also at a standstill.
What are the employees looking for?
The faculty union and the Cal State system are discussing a new contract and amendment to the current contract, which runs until June 2024. More than 95 percent of voting members have chosen to approve a contract. permission to strike According to the union in October. The committee does not want to say how many members voted.
The union wants an immediate wage increase of 12 percent for the current academic year; the university system has offered a 5 percent increase for each of the next three years. The union also wants to raise the salary floor for full-time employees from $54,360 to $64,360, and is asking for other provisions, including class size caps and an expansion of paid parental leave.
University leaders say they are struggling with one huge budget deficit and cannot afford what the union demands. The system recently negotiated 5 percent raises with four other unions, said Leora Freedman, the university’s vice chancellor for human resources.
“CSU is committed to providing all of our employees with fair, competitive pay and benefits,” Freedman said in a statement. “We recognize the need to increase compensation and are committed to doing so, but our financial obligations must be fiscally sustainable.”
She added: “We respect the right of our unions to engage in strike activity, and we are prepared to minimize any disruption to our campuses. Our hope is that the planned strike activities will not cause any problems for our students and that we can return to the negotiating table with the CFA as soon as possible to reach an agreement.”
What can happen next?
On Friday, a fact-finding report written by a third party negotiator was released as part of a mediation process. The negotiator recommended a 7 percent increase in faculty salaries this year, “with other economic improvements.”
But the negotiator also acknowledged that the faculty union and the university had “radically different views” about Cal State’s financial situation: The faculty union believes the university can tap its reserves, the negotiator said, while management says it will use those funds must put aside. for emergencies.
In an email to its members, the union said it believed 7 percent was not enough to address the loss of purchasing power. EdSource reports this. (The negotiator noted that a 7 percent increase would not be enough to keep up with inflation.)
Union officials have said no more strikes are planned for December after this week, but that does not mean there will be no more action in the new year.
“The decision was made to start on the small side,” and leave room to escalate later if necessary, said Wehr, chairman of the negotiating team, told CalMatters. “We don’t necessarily feel the need to go from zero to 60.”
Where we travel to
Today’s tip comes from Catherine Sims:
“The Santa Barbara Zoo is in a beautiful location, with views of the mountains, ocean and Channel Island. But on Christmas evenings you can see beautifully lit displays of elephants, zebras, gorillas, dinosaurs and more throughout the grounds. There is even an interactive area for children to enjoy.
The effect of the beautiful, handmade, silk-covered animals lighting up the night is difficult to describe. Our family was impressed. We look forward to enjoying it again.”
Tell us about your favorite places to visit in California. Email your suggestions to CAtoday@nytimes.com. We will share more in future editions of the newsletter.
Tell us
What songs belong on a California holiday playlist? We hope to have one out before the new year with your delicious recommendations.
Email me at CAtoday@nytimes.com with your suggestions. Please include your name and the city in which you live.
And before you go: good news
An 80-year-old Bay Area resident who ran a 100-mile race in Illinois last month broke the American record for runners over 80 by more than two and a half hours, KTVU-TV reports.
Eighty-year-old Wally Hesseltine completed the Tunnel Hill 100 in just over 26 hours and 22 minutes, beating the previous record of 29 hours and 3 minutes. Hesseltine, the oldest runner to finish the Tunnel Hill race in Vienna, Illinois, finished 128th out of 179 runners overall.
The record, while impressive, is a drop in the bucket for Hesseltine, who has now completed 29 100-mile races, 56 marathons and more than 200 ultramarathons – meaning any run longer than the 26.2 miles of a traditional marathon.
Hesseltine said he had competed in at least one race a month for the past four decades to stay competitive. And he has no plans to slow down: He wants to complete an ultramarathon in all fifty states, 45 of which are already to his name and another planned in Mississippi in March.
Why does he keep racing? Simple: “I still enjoy it and I want to continue,” Hesseltine told the news station.
Thank you for reading. I’ll come back tomorrow. — Soumya
PS Here it is today’s mini crossword.
Maia Coleman, Briana Scalia and Bernard Mokam contributed to California Today. You can reach the team via CAtoday@nytimes.com.
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