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Unfair Labor Practice Strike Fact Sheet and FAQ

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What is an Unfair Labor Practice?

The Higher Education Employee Relations Act (HEERA) establishes our rights to bargain collectively and outlines rules governing our relationships to the University of California. Violations of these rules, known as Unfair Labor Practices (ULPs), constitute unlawful conduct by our employer.

 

Examples include:

  • coercive questioning of employees regarding their protected union activity;
  • violations of the employer’s duty to bargain in good faith;
  • unilateral changes to policies and practices that must be bargained;
  • threatening employees or discriminating against employees because they participated in protected union activities;
  • repudiation of collective bargaining agreements and of collective bargaining relationships.

The California Public Employees Relations Board (PERB) adjudicates claims of Unfair Labor Practices Unions and can impose financial and legal penalties. Workers are also allowed to strike over ULPs in order to protest their employer’s labor law violations. (see PERB’s website for more details)

UC Management’s Pattern of Bad Faith

In the last 10 days, UC-AFT has filed two new unfair labor practice charges over the UC management’s refusal to participate in good faith in the statutory impasse procedures and to bargain in good faith over paid family leaves.

Over the last 20 months, we filed five additional unfair labor practice charges over various unilateral changes, refusals to bargain and repudiation of our contract. UCOP’s seven ULPs in the last twenty months show a clear pattern of disrespect, lack of consideration, and unlawful actions, all of which interferes with our negotiating process and undermines our collective bargaining rights.

ULP Strike Flyer_0.pngHere’s a list of the charges in brief with links to full descriptions below.

  • Refusal to bargain over paid leave policy, which is a mandatory subject of bargaining
  • Bad faith with respect to the impasse procedures;
  • Repudiation of mutually agreed-to contract terms that provide for additional compensation for online instruction and essential teaching supplies;
  • Refusal to bargain over settlement terms after improperly withholding employer retirement contributions;
  • Refusal to bargain over the effects of layoffs lecturers at UC Davis;
  • Refusal to bargain over a unilateral attempt to exclude some lecturers from our bargaining unit at UCSC;
  • Refusal to bargain over the impacts of COVID conditions on K-12 teachers represented by UC-AFT. Management only came to the bargaining table and negotiated in good faith after UC-AFT K-12 teachers authorized a strike over UCOP’s bad faith.

UC management has demonstrated the same pattern with our fellow UC workers, forcing them to strike.

Enough is enough! We must fight together to protest UC management’s refusal to bargain with UC-AFT in good faith.

UCOP’s Refusal to Bargain over Paid Family Leave

In October 2021, UC-AFT filed a ULP charging that President Drake’s administration has refused to negotiate in good faith over a new paid family leave program. The policy would provide eight weeks of paid leave for some UC employees to care for a seriously ill family member or bond with a new child. But the eligibility threshold to access the new benefit excludes thousands of lecturers, the majority of whom teach part-time and are more likely to be women and caregivers than their tenure-track colleagues. Worried that lecturers would be left behind again, UC-AFT demanded to negotiate over the details of the policy. UC management initially stated that the new paid family leave program was “subject to collective bargaining,” but President Drake’s representatives have subsequently, repeatedly declared in writing that they would not negotiate.

 

UCOP’s Failure to Participate in Statutory Impasse Procedures in Good Faith

In November 2021, UC-AFT filed a ULP charging that President Drake’s administration has failed to participate in the statutory impasse procedures in good faith as required by law. Despite UC-AFT’s insistence that any on-the-record bargaining take place in an open bargaining session, UC negotiators went outside the confidential mediation process and emailed the Union an on-the-record proposal. President Drake’s representatives unilaterally imposed a deadline for UC-AFT to accept or reject the offer, take-it-or-leave-it, and refused to meet with UC-AFT in an opening bargaining session until the offer had “expired.” President Drake’s representatives misrepresented the terms of their proposal in bargaining and in public communications and misrepresented their own conduct in this process in direct communications to UC-AFT members.

 

UCOP’s Refusal to Bargain over Missing Retirement Contributions

In May 2020, UC management informed over 200 of our members that they had failed to make the employer supplemental retirement contributions for close to two years. These unpaid, contractually-required contributions amounted to some $650,000. UC-AFT demanded to bargain over the detrimental effects of this costly error and how it should be remedied, but President Drake’s representatives simply refused to negotiate, claiming that the problem was solved. This lack of transparency and unilateral decision-making violates the spirit of our collective bargaining rights. We still don't know if our members have been made whole. UC-AFT filed an unfair practice charge and continues to pursue it.

 

UCOP’s Refusal to Bargain Effects of Layoffs

After UC Davis’s administration unilaterally decided to close its Physical Education program, UC-AFT demanded to negotiate over the effects. Just two days before classes were to begin, fourteen lecturers, who together taught some 6,000 students a year, received emails notifying them their jobs would be discontinued. While UC management has the right to cancel classes and lay off personnel, we have the right to negotiate the effects of layoff, like timing and other accommodations. In this case, no university protocol was followed: management simply refused to negotiate. We filed another unfair practice charge.

 

UCOP’s Repudiation of Our Contract--Refusal to Compensate for Additional Work and Reimburse for Out-of-Pocket Expenses
After campuses closed and all courses were moved online in March 2020, UC teaching faculty stepped up for their students, spending countless hours and their own money to ensure high-quality remote teaching. UC-AFT demanded that management negotiate terms to ensure that lecturers would be compensated for additional work and out-of-pocket costs. Management refused to negotiate, and they repudiated our current contract by refusing to implement the status quo terms related to workload and instructional support. We filed an unfair practice charge in September 2020 and PERB issued a complaint, meaning there's evidence of labor law violation. Unfortunately, our settlement discussions have stalled because UC has refused to respond or engage in negotiations.

 

UCOP’s Refusal to Bargain COVID Effects for K-12 Schools

UC-AFT’s demand to bargain over the impacts of remote instruction due to the COVID-19 pandemic included impacts on our members who teach at UC’s three K-12 schools (The Preuss School at UCSD, UCLA Lab School, UCLA Geffen Academy). While UC Management agreed to negotiate, they refused to schedule bargaining dates for the Lab School at UCLA. UC-AFT filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge and PERB very quickly issued a complaint. Management only came to the table to negotiate after our members at the Lab School threatened to strike.

 

UCOP’s Refusal to Bargain over Exclusion of Lecturers from Our Bargaining Unit

In December 2020, the administration at UCSC announced a new policy that would, under certain conditions, prohibit those who were teaching courses as a lecturer from being included in our bargaining unit. In addition to classroom teaching, many of our members hold other jobs within the university—as program coordinators, supervisors of teacher education, or researchers—and have previously been included in our bargaining unit because of their teaching duties. When UC management unilaterally implemented a new policy, UC-AFT filed an unfair practice charge for unilateral modification of the bargaining unit and failure to bargain the change.

 

FAQ's

What does it mean to go on strike?

A: A strike is a show of solidarity workers withhold labor from their employer to make our contributions and our power visible. For UC lecturers, that means no classes, no grading, no meetings, no asynchronous instruction, and no other teaching-related work for the duration of the strike. Instead, we join the picket line. On the picket line, we’ll use the time to support each other and send the message to the administration that our labor is critical for the functioning of our university and for our students’ success.

 

Why are lecturers going on strike now?
A: We are going on strike now because of bad faith by President Drake’s administration, that is, his administration’s refusal to negotiate as the law requires. Their violation of their duty to bargain in good faith is undermining our collective bargaining rights. At this point, given the impunity with which UCOP breaks state labor law, and their cavalier approach to their legal obligations, a strike is the only way to ensure that they hear our concerns and treat lecturers with the dignity and respect we deserve.

 

What is an Unfair Labor Practice?
A: The Higher Education Employee Relations Act (HEERA) establishes our rights to bargain collectively and outlines rules governing our relationships to the University of California. Violations of these rules, known as Unfair Labor Practices (ULPs), constitute unlawful conduct by our employer. Examples include: threatening employees or discriminating against employees because they participated in protected union activities; violations of the duty to bargain and participate in statutory impasse procedures in good faith; unilateral changes to terms and conditions of employment that must be bargained; and repudiations of collective bargaining agreements and the collective bargaining relationship. Under California law, the Public Employees Relations Board (PERB) adjudicates claims of Unfair Labor Practices Unions and can impose financial and legal penalties. Workers are also allowed to strike over ULPs in order to protest their employer’s labor law violations.

UC-AFT has recently filed ULP charges over UCOP’s refusal to bargain over paid family leave and their bad faith during statutory impasse procedures. This makes a total of seven ULPs UC-AFT has filed in the past 20 months over UCOP’s unilateral changes, refusals to bargain and repudiation of our contract.

 

Will a strike harm my students?
A: We believe the real harm to our students is in the current administration’s disrespect, mistreatment, and lack of support for us as teaching faculty. When President Drake’s administrators won’t bargain in good faith, they’re refusing to even participate in negotiations that could improve teaching and learning at our university.

The goal of our strike is NOT to hurt students. We are striking FOR and WITH students who are ill-served by an administration that won’t respect the rights of their instructors. For most lecturers, going on strike for two days will affect their classes as if they were briefly sick or traveling to a conference. We believe this short-term disruption will bring long-term benefits for ourselves and for our students so we can continue to offer them the high-quality education they deserve.

How long will a strike last?
A: Although we can’t confirm the dates yet, a strike would last no more than 2 days, probably a Wednesday and a Thursday.

How do I explain to my students why I’m cancelling class?
It is important to let your students know that you are striking because that is the only way to get UC’s attention to convince them to stop interfering with your rights. But it will be important to make clear to your students that you will be withholding all labor associated with your teaching for the duration of the strike. That includes office hours, email, course websites, synchronous remote instruction, asynchronous instruction, and service work (meetings, etc.), and that you will not be offering any substitutes for classroom instruction. Only by withdrawing our labor completely can we send a clear message to the administration that our work is critical to our students’ success.

You can (and should) stay in touch with your students during the strike via your personal (non-UC) email account to help them understand what’s happening, answer any emergency questions, and, if you wish, invite them to join you at the picket line. You can also share these five ways to support teaching faculty.

 

I’m still teaching remotely - can I participate?

A: Yes! All you have to do is not teach your class and turn off access to your website. If you are near your campus, turn out to the picket line so that you’re visible. We need to stand together in person to support each other and demonstrate our unity. If not, we could use your help calling, texting, and e-mailing fellow members to get them to the picket line. You can do all of that remotely if you are far from your campus.

 

Could I be fired for going on strike?
A: No! We are being very careful to ensure that we are striking legally so that our jobs are protected. Federal and state labor laws also protect workers from any retaliation they face for exercising their rights. But we also know that in academia, retaliation can come in more subtle forms. We must stand together to protect one another, because an injury to one is an injury to all.

 

Do I have to notify my colleagues or my department?
No, you are under no obligation to notify your department chair or administrators that you’ll be on strike. If they should ask you whether you’re on strike, you are not legally required to respond, but if you do choose to respond, you must do so truthfully. Lecturers often report feeling obliged to give advanced warning so their teaching duties can be covered by others. But in the context of a strike, finding replacements to do the work that someone on strike would usually do undermines the very purpose of the strike. It’s known as scabbing and it is not something you should invite or inadvertently encourage.

You should, however, tell your fellow teaching faculty that you’re planning to strike and encourage them to the picket line!

 

Will President Drake’s administration dock my pay?
While it is unlikely that UCOP would retaliate against a short-term strike, UC-AFT has set up a strike fund so that we can ensure our members are supported if President Drake tries to retaliate against our members financially. The fund will provide one-time grants of up to $750 to eligible dues-paying members to support them during any financial difficulties that may arise. Learn more and donate here.

 

I’m a Unit 17 librarian, how can I support the lecturers’ strike?
A: Under the current Unit 17 contract, librarians are not allowed to strike in solidarity with lecturers. But we encourage you to join the picket on your own, non-work time! Bring all your colleagues and friends. The more people we have on the picket line, the stronger we will be. You can also donate to our strike fund and boost our signal on social media.