The California Faculty Association (CFA), representing 29 thousand faculty at the 23 campuses of the California State University (CSU), held a series of rolling strikes against the largest public university system in the United States in December. The union has been engaged in contract reopener talks in advance of a full contract battle later this year.þþThe union has demanded a 12 percent pay raise for all faculty as well as additional raises in the wages of the lowest-paid faculty across the campuses. In addition, the CFA is asking for an extension in paid family leave to one semester, gender-inclusive restrooms and lactation spaces, greater support for mental health counseling services on campus, regulation of faculty members’ ever-expanding workloads, and reforms in campus policing limiting armed police interaction with faculty members.þþThe CSU system has refused to meet these demands, instead offering a five percent raise in the first year, with subsequent raises contingent on budgetary constraints. As union leaders are quick to point out, “contingent” almost always means “never.” After the 2021 contract, faculty learned this lesson the hard way, as promised raises evaporated in the name of budget shortfalls. The system also has been unresponsive to the union’s other demands.þþIn response to the system’s recalcitrance, the union began a series of one-day strikes at campuses across the state in December. These strikes targeted Cal State Sacramento, Cal State Los Angeles, Cal Poly Pomona, and San Francisco State University.þþTeamsters Local 2010 members held sympathy strikes and turned up as early as 5 a.m. on the four campuses to shut down construction sites (which can cause inconveniences to employers and lead to more serious problems like contract disputes), block mail delivery, slow traffic, and reroute public transit.
Source: truthout.org
