UC Student Worker Union (UAW 2865) Announces Solidarity Strike with AFSCME 3299 on November 20th
Message from the UAW Bargaining team:
Today we announce that our union, UAW Local 2865—the union representing 12,000 TA’s, tutors, and readers across the
UC—will be joining CNA and UC’s Skilled Craft’s Unit in a one-day sympathy strike with AFSCME 3299, the union representing service workers, janitors and shuttle drivers.
A sympathy strike is about conveying a powerful message of strength and solidarity for our Union brothers and sisters. A strike is most effective if we all participate and honor the strike. This means we are hoping TA’s, tutors, and readers refrain from all work duties that day. That includes: teaching sections; holding office hours; grading papers; and in general, anything related to your duties as an academic worker. Instead, graduate students workers should join AFSCME, CNA, the Skilled Crafts Unit and hundreds of undergraduates on the picket lines throughout the day. And we should encourage our students, friends, cohorts, department administrators, family, neighbors, and faculty to join us.
Yesterday, you received two very important emails about UC workers. The first detailed the historic success of our union’s strikeauthorization vote that took place at every UC campus last week. Members of our local authorized our union’s leadership to call for astrike with thousands of graduate student workers voting to authorize a strike with a 96% approval rate. You also received an email notifying you that AFSCME 3299—the union representing over 22,000 service and patient care workers across the UC universities and hospitals—will go on strike on November 20th. AFSCME 3299 will be joined on the picket lines by members of the California Nurses Association and UC Santa Cruz’ Skilled Crafts Unit (K7—also represented by AFSCME 3299)—each of whom have authorized a sympathy strike and given notice to UC.
Our union will also be joining AFSCME and CNA at the picket lines that day. This will bring the total number of estimated UC workers on strike on November 20th to over 35,000. You can read our press release here (http://www.uaw2865.org/wp-content/uploads/UAW-2865-Sympathy-Strike-with-AFSCME-press-release.docx).
Over the past several years, AFSCME 3299 has partnered with students and especially with UAW 2865 on important issues that have helped stem the tide of privatization at the UC. This includes supporting student calls for tuition freezes by lobbying in Sacramento, and partnering to organize students and workers.
Like ourselves, AFSCME workers have a first hand experience in the ways that budget cuts coupled with administrative pay raises in the last decade have negatively impacted our working conditions. AFSCME is currently fighting a 1.5% wage cut unilaterally implemented by UC management as well as threats to their pensions.
AFSCME workers are striking for a second time this year—this time to protest management’s unfair practices, including unlawful intimidation and bullying against workers that stemmed from AFSCME’s May strike.
Information for the Strike at UC Santa Cruz
Picket lines will be up all day! Food will be provided at the picket lines.At Santa Cruz a strike will also likely mean that the campus is not easily accessible by car. We will send more details from the undergraduate organizing committee regarding their access plan in the next few days.
Picket line locations: Hagar and Coolidge (near the entrance to faculty housing) & the West Entrance.
Picket line times: 4 am to 8:30 pm!
We need help to make this strike a success! We need members there ALL DAY! Sign up for picket shifts by clicking here: Sign up for picket line shifts.
Help spread the word about why it’s important to support this strike by making announcements in undergraduate sections, labs and classes: Sign up! Announcement in Undergrad Classes/Sections.
If you have questions, please email us at santacruz@uaw2865.org.
In solidarity,
Your Bargaining TeamDuane Wright-UC Davis
Brenda Medina-Hernandez-UC Davis
Marco Rosales-UC Davis
Munira Lokhandwala-UC Berkeley
Amanda Armstrong-UC Berkeley
Michelle Glowa-UC Santa Cruz
Josh Brahinsky-UC Santa Cruz
Rob Ackermann-UC Santa Barbabra
Amanda Zeddy-UC Santa Barbara
John Gust-UC Riverside
Jason Struna-UC Riverside
Cody Trojan-UC Los Angeles
Jason Ball-UC Los Angeles
Jessica Conte-UC Irvine
Robert Wood-UC Irvine
Leslie Manjarrez-UC San Diego
Kevan Aguilar-UC San Diego