The UC union representing 48,000 graduate teaching assistants, researchers and other academic workers said Friday it would expand its ongoing strike next week by calling for thousands of workers at UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara and UC Irvine to leave their jobs. jobs, a significant escalation of labor tensions that would involve six of the system's 10 campuses.
The decision by leaders of United Auto Workers Local 4811 comes as the union and the University of California are battling before a state labor board over the legality of the strike, and are awaiting a decision on the issue. The union alleges its rights were violated by the UC's actions during the pro-Palestinian protests and camp crackdown.
Academic workers at UCLA and UC Davis went on strike Tuesday, following members of the UC Santa Cruz union, who have been picketing since May 20. Union members in San Diego and Santa Barbara are scheduled for Monday. Irvine workers would start Wednesday. The strikes take place during final exams, a critical time of year when the work of union members, who lead focus groups, grade papers and administer exams, is particularly important.
UC leaders are “disheartened” by the union's announcement, which they say will further harm students at crucial academic time, said UC spokeswoman Heather Hansen.
Hours before the expansion announcement, police in riot gear entered the UC Santa Cruz campus and arrested pro-Palestinian protesters who set up camp and blocked the main entrance to the campus. A UC Santa Cruz official said the university turned to police to break up the encampment after repeatedly instructing students (for weeks and on Friday morning) to stop their “intentional and dangerous blocking of campus entrances.” .
It was not immediately known if there were union members among the protesters or those arrested.
Union members authorized the strikes in mid-May, accusing UC leaders of violating members' free speech rights to speak about their workplaces when police were called to remove pro-Palestinian camps or disperse protests across multiple campuses, resulting in arrests and suspensions. . They also say the university violated its members' rights as workers by failing to protect them when a mob attacked protesters at UCLA, including union members, and it took hours for police to intervene.
UC leaders maintain the strike is illegal because of a no-strike clause in the union contract, which won significant raises for workers after a 2022 strike.
The union says that provision is irrelevant to its strike because it is based on unfair labor practice charges it filed with the state labor board citing the university's treatment of dozens of pro-Palestinian workers at UCLA, UC Irvine and UC San Diego.
The two sides are currently in mediation through the state's Public Employee Relations Board.
Last week, the board rejected UC's request to stop the strike on the grounds that it was causing irreparable harm to students, research and operations.
The university doubled down on its request for an injunction on Wednesday, presenting evidence citing the extension of strikes this week to UCLA and UC Davis and arguing that union members have disrupted classes and access to campuses. The strikes, he claimed, were “to the detriment of tens of thousands of students, faculty and other members of the university community.”
In a response filed Thursday night, the union said “the university has once again failed” to prove its point and that its allegations are “speculative” and “baseless.” In some cases, the UAW blamed campus disruptions and blockades on pro-Palestinian college students or other non-union groups.
“Over the past month, UC has used and tolerated violence against workers and students peacefully protesting on campus for peace and freedom in Palestine,” UAW 4811 President Rafael Jaime, a student, said in a statement Friday. PhD from UCLA. “Instead of devoting its energies to resolution, UC is attempting to stop the strike through legal proceedings. “They have not been successful and this strike will continue.”
He called on UC to address charges of unfair labor practices and begin “by dropping all criminal and conduct charges that have been brought against our members because they spoke out against injustice.”
The UC said the strike is causing “irreparable impacts.”
“We are disheartened that the UAW continues to publicly escalate its illegal strike in violation of the no-strike clause in its contracts and encouraging its members to disrupt and harm our students' ability to successfully pass final exams and other critical school activities. end of the year,” Hansen said. in a sentence. “The UAW's goals of 'maximizing chaos and confusion' have been realized, creating substantial and irreparable impacts on campuses and impacting our students at a crucial time in their education. “We are hopeful that PERB will intervene and ask the court to end this precedent-setting illegal action.”
