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    "result": {"data":{"mdx":{"body":"var _excluded = [\"components\"];\nfunction _extends() { _extends = Object.assign ? Object.assign.bind() : function (target) { for (var i = 1; i < arguments.length; i++) { var source = arguments[i]; for (var key in source) { if (Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(source, key)) { target[key] = source[key]; } } } return target; }; return _extends.apply(this, arguments); }\nfunction _objectWithoutProperties(source, excluded) { if (source == null) return {}; var target = _objectWithoutPropertiesLoose(source, excluded); var key, i; if (Object.getOwnPropertySymbols) { var sourceSymbolKeys = Object.getOwnPropertySymbols(source); for (i = 0; i < sourceSymbolKeys.length; i++) { key = sourceSymbolKeys[i]; if (excluded.indexOf(key) >= 0) continue; if (!Object.prototype.propertyIsEnumerable.call(source, key)) continue; target[key] = source[key]; } } return target; }\nfunction _objectWithoutPropertiesLoose(source, excluded) { if (source == null) return {}; var target = {}; var sourceKeys = Object.keys(source); var key, i; for (i = 0; i < sourceKeys.length; i++) { key = sourceKeys[i]; if (excluded.indexOf(key) >= 0) continue; target[key] = source[key]; } return target; }\n/* @jsxRuntime classic */\n/* @jsx mdx */\n\nvar _frontmatter = {\n  \"date\": \"2023-01-31\",\n  \"title\": \"'Could have fought harder': Response to new contracts reveals a union divided\",\n  \"bylineName\": [\"Cameron Fozi\"],\n  \"bylineUrl\": [\"https://www.dailycal.org/author/cfozi\"],\n  \"subhead\": \"UAW 2865, SRU-UAW members split on labor contracts, election practices and strike strategy\",\n  \"featuredImage\": \"../images/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.png\",\n  \"imageAttribution\": \"Hsi-Min Chan | Senior Staff\",\n  \"aboutStory\": \"Data for this project come from UC-UAW email communications and the University of California.\"\n};\nvar makeShortcode = function makeShortcode(name) {\n  return function MDXDefaultShortcode(props) {\n    console.warn(\"Component \" + name + \" was not imported, exported, or provided by MDXProvider as global scope\");\n    return mdx(\"div\", props);\n  };\n};\nvar UnionVoteBarChart = makeShortcode(\"UnionVoteBarChart\");\nvar TimeDoctorateBarChart = makeShortcode(\"TimeDoctorateBarChart\");\nvar layoutProps = {\n  _frontmatter: _frontmatter\n};\nvar MDXLayout = \"wrapper\";\nreturn function MDXContent(_ref) {\n  var components = _ref.components,\n    props = _objectWithoutProperties(_ref, _excluded);\n  return mdx(MDXLayout, _extends({}, layoutProps, props, {\n    components: components,\n    mdxType: \"MDXLayout\"\n  }), mdx(\"p\", null, \"For weeks, 48,000 academic workers united in a UC-wide strike. In its wake, student researchers, or SRs, and academic student employees, or ASEs, find themselves split.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"On Dec. 23, 2022, the strike ended with the ratifications of new labor contracts between the UC system and two local unions: UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW, which represent ASEs and SRs, respectively. Since then, members and leaders have disputed union election practices, strike strategy and the impact of the two new contracts on their thousands of representees.\"), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"h2\", null, \"Majority support, coupled with a sizable opposition\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"On Dec. 9, 2022, a majority of UAW 5810\\u2019s membership \\u2014 consisting of more than 11,000 postdoctoral scholars and academic researchers \\u2014 had ratified two contracts with the UC system. The UAW 5810 votes suggested widespread support, with 89.4% and 79.5% of voters approving the new contracts for postdocs and academic researchers, respectively.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Support for the UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW contracts was not as clear-cut.\"), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(UnionVoteBarChart, {\n    mdxType: \"UnionVoteBarChart\"\n  }), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"p\", null, mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"The interactive chart above plots the results of the UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW contract ratification votes across UC campuses.\")), mdx(\"p\", null, mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"Data come from an email sent by \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    parentName: \"em\",\n    \"href\": \"mailto:communications@uc-uaw.org\"\n  }, \"communications@uc-uaw.org\"), \", which was obtained by The Daily Californian.\")), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Tentative agreements for SRs\\u2019 and ASEs\\u2019 new contracts were approved by 68.4% and 61.6% of voters, respectively, and most campuses voted in support of the new contracts.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Tarini Hardikar \\u2014 UAW 2865 member, SRU-UAW bargaining team member and doctoral candidate in UC Berkeley\\u2019s department of chemistry \\u2014 is among these thousands of supporters.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CThis agreement goes farther than any comparable contract in addressing our struggles, both financial and otherwise,\\u201D Hardikar said about the new contracts in an email. She added that SRU-UAW\\u2019s new contract is its first with the UC system \\u2014 one she believes will be \\u201Cquite transformative.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Yet, the UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW votes are still a departure from academic researchers\\u2019 and postdocs\\u2019 broader support for their contracts.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW are much larger local unions than UAW 5810. SRU-UAW represents about 17,000 SRs, and UAW 2865 is comprised of more than 19,000 ASEs. UAW 5810 only represents some 11,000 academic researchers and postdocs \\u2014 less than one-quarter of the 48,000 strikers.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Data show a divide between campuses. On both tentative agreements, voters from UC Merced and UC Santa Cruz showed stiff opposition \\u2014 as did UC Santa Barbara\\u2019s ASEs.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The relatively large sizes of UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW portend a large faction of supporters. But they also face a hefty opposition: more than 7,000 ASEs and 4,500 SRs voted against the tentative agreements.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"One of these ASEs is Omari Averette-Phillips. Once a UAW 2865 steward and a union representative with the National Union of Healthcare Workers, he is now a member of UAW 2865 and a doctoral student in history at UC Davis.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CA refrain going into the strike was how the Union was \\u201848,000 workers strong,\\u2019 \\u201D Averette-Phillips said. \\u201CUnfortunately what we saw was that the bargaining team, despite these numbers, was willing to bargain against themselves and capitulate to the demands of the UC,\\u201D he alleged.\"), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"h2\", null, \"\\u2018We made too many concessions too quickly\\u2019: Wages, accommodations, tuition remission and policing at the bargaining table.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"While many call the newly ratified UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW contracts \\u201Ctransformative,\\u201D some union members believe their bargaining teams left potential contract gains unwon.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Over the life of the contract, ASEs will see their current wages increase between 55 and 80 percent, and SRs\\u2019 wages will rise between 25 and 80 percent, according to the UAW 2865 website.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"By October 2024, UC Berkeley\\u2019s entry-level graduate student instructors can expect $4,249.06 each month for working 20 hours per week \\u2014 about $38,200 for nine months of work during the academic year. Across the UC system, the minimum monthly salary for SRs working 20 hours per week will be about $2,880.38 in October 2024 \\u2014 or about $34,560 for the calendar year.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"In September and October 2022, however, UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW bargained to increase base wage for SRs and many ASEs working 20 hours per week to an annual $54,084.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Out of SRU-UAW\\u2019s 21 total bargainers, Hardikar is among the 13 who moved to tentatively agree on the UC system\\u2019s Dec. 15, 2022 offer. She\\u2019s also one of more than 10,000 SRU-UAW members who voted to ratify the contract.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Hardikar recognized that the contracts did not win all they set out to achieve for academic workers, but she still sees plenty to admire.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CWe have industry-setting protections against bullying, harassment, and discrimination, along with workplace safety and health protections,\\u201D Hardikar said about SRU-UAW\\u2019s contract in an email. \\u201CWorker's compensation and a solid leaves policy, on top of incredible raises makes this a very successful contract in my opinion.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Concessions are, after all, an expected part of negotiation. Ideally, concessions are a step toward the other party \\u2014 all in an effort to meet in the middle.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Yet, thousands believe there was more for academic workers to win. Nicholas Cruz, a UAW 2865 bargainer and doctoral student in political science at UC Merced, is one of them.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CI do think we could have fought harder for a lot of these articles,\\u201D Cruz said in an interview. \\u201CWe made too many concessions too quickly.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Following a UC system proposal on access needs, Cruz says he received dozens of emails from union members urging the bargaining team to reject the university\\u2019s offer. That offer was tentatively agreed upon by the UAW 2865 bargaining team and has been codified into their new contract.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The local unions\\u2019 two articles entitled \\u201CReasonable Accommodation\\u201D remain the same as UAW 2865\\u2019s last contract aside from two changes. Firstly, an ASE or SR can invite a union representative to discuss reasonable accommodations with a university representative. Also, the new contracts touch on temporary work adjustments while the employee and the university arrange workplace accommodations.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The new contracts add access-related policies outside of the \\u201CReasonable Accommodation\\u201D articles, as well. Upon being notified of their work appointment, ASEs and SRs are told to request accommodations, under the \\u201CAppointment Notification\\u201D articles. Moreover, the \\u201CJoint Labor Management Committee\\u201D side letters suggest agenda items for committees on workplace accessibility.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW\\u2019s first proposals on workplace accessibility, however, would have required that all technology and software used for ASEs\\u2019 and SRs\\u2019 work be accessible with no mention of medical documentation.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The ratified contract makes no such promises, explicitly. If both the university and the employee agree the work necessitates an accommodation, the contracts state that SRs and ASEs should discuss potential solutions with university representatives.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Julia M\\xE9traux is the founder and president of the Disabled Journalists Association\\u2019s Berkeley chapter, a member of UAW 2865 and a graduate student in the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CIt feels very \\u2018(human resources)\\u2019 and not very \\u2018disability justice,\\u2019 \\u201D M\\xE9traux said about the new contracts\\u2019 access policies in an interview. \\u201CIt's made to protect the employer, especially with having a university (representative) come in,\\u201D she alleged.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Like the last contract between the UAW 2865 and the university, the UC system may ask SRs and ASEs to provide medical documentation \\u201Cidentifying functional limitations and how such limitations affect the (academic worker\\u2019s) ability to perform the essential functions of the job.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"In some cases, the university may pay for a UC-appointed health care provider to examine the employee.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"M\\xE9traux also critiqued the contracts\\u2019 policies on medical documentation.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CIt's also an impossible process if you don't have medical documentation. For example, you're just really sick and don't know what's wrong.\\u201D M\\xE9traux said. \\u201CI went through that phase when I was in undergrad, and that caused me to leave my undergrad program.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The contracts\\u2019 remission of nonresident supplemental tuition, or NRST, fell short of some academic workers\\u2019 hopes as well.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The ratified contracts remit three years of NRST for doctoral students ready to research and write a dissertation, which was a preexisting university policy.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Four international students on the UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW bargaining teams \\u2014 including Hardikar \\u2014 penned an open letter on NRST.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CCodifying existing remission policies \\u2026 will allow us to enforce these remissions, and allow us to file and win grievances for other past practices, ensuring continuation of remission policies,\\u201D the letter reads. \\u201CWe understand that this win on the NRST front is limited, and falls short of our initial bargaining demands.\\u201D While \\u201Climited,\\u201D the letter continued to call the contracts\\u2019 NRST remissions a \\u201Cvictory.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"If a nonresident doctoral student is not yet ready to work on their dissertation, the UC system can charge them up to $15,102 in NRST for the 2022-23 academic year, under the new contracts.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The local unions\\u2019 first proposals for tuition and fee remission, however, attempted to remit all tuition and fees \\u2014 nonresident and otherwise \\u2014 for each term an ASE or SR works 25% or more of full-time employment.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CI don't think the union fights for international student NRST remission enough,\\u201D alleged Yuanqi Lyu, an international doctoral student in UC Berkeley\\u2019s department of physics, a member of SRU-UAW and a UAW 2865 steward.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"He explained that some departments help offset their international students\\u2019 NRST charges. For example, UC Berkeley\\u2019s math department covers NRST for an additional two academic years.\"), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(TimeDoctorateBarChart, {\n    mdxType: \"TimeDoctorateBarChart\"\n  }), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"p\", null, mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"The chart above plots the average number of registered years it took students in the 2018-2020 graduating cohort to complete one doctoral degree across UC campuses. Data exclude periods of time during which students were not registered in graduate study at their campus. Data also do not include students in professional doctoral programs, such as J.D., M.D. or Pharm.D. programs.\")), mdx(\"p\", null, mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"Data come from the University of California \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/about-us/information-center/time-doctorate\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"website\"), \".\")), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Across UC campuses, students often take longer than five years to complete their doctoral degree. UC Berkeley doctoral students took the second longest \\u2014 with an average of 5.9 years.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CTo see people advertise this \\u2026 as a win is not quite pleasant and feels very condescending,\\u201D said Galen Liang, a UAW 2865 member and UC Berkeley international doctoral student in math, in an interview.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The union will organize to secure full NRST remission in the coming years, according to Hardikar.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"In recent years, movements across the UC system have attempted to reform, disendow or abolish campus policing. UAW 2865 did, too, in its contract negotiations.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"On Sept. 21, 2022, the UAW 2865 bargaining team proposed what would have been a new article: \\u201CCommunity Safety.\\u201D The article would have prohibited the university from calling external law enforcement to campuses and \\u201C(defunded) the budgets dedicated to (UCPD),\\u201D which totaled $155 million in the 2021-22 fiscal year.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"If local, state or federal law enforcement ever made it to campus, the university would have been obligated to report the agency, size, location, purpose and duration of police presence to ASEs. Their presence was also grounds for ASEs to take time off work or avoid campus without penalty or reduction in pay.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"After it was first introduced, neither party made further proposals on \\u201CCommunity Safety,\\u201D and no version of the article was included in UAW 2865\\u2019s contract.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"While Cruz alleged UC bargainers \\u201Cseemed to just not acknowledge its existence,\\u201D he also alleged the UAW 2865 bargaining team didn\\u2019t expect the proposed article to go far in the first place.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CIt\\u2019s particularly rare for this sort of thing to end up on the table,\\u201D Cruz said. \\u201CFor a lot of these long-shot articles that we don\\u2019t typically expect to win or to actually get or don\\u2019t expect to go very far, they\\u2019re still useful as bargaining chips.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Cruz explained that the bargaining team had their sights set on other efforts. But ultimately, UAW 2865 and the university have conflicting attitudes toward campus policing.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The Federated University Police Officer\\u2019s Association \\u2014 the union representing UCPD officers \\u2014 ratified its own contract with the university in 2022. In response, UC executive director of labor relations Letitia Silas stated that \\u201CUC deeply values the commitment and contributions of our police officers to the university and the communities we serve, particularly during the many challenges of the past two and a half years.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"In contrast, a February 2021 report from the UAW 2865 Research Working Group urged organizers to pressure the university to defund, disarm, disband and abolish campus police.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"For Averette-Phillips, the short-lived bargaining on \\u201CCommunity Safety\\u201D is telling.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CUAW (2865) refused to have the backs of Black, Brown, Indigenous, Asian and disabled workers by refusing to push this article. By not pushing this article the (UAW 2865) bargaining team showed a lack of courage, a lack of care and concern for their coworkers and a subservience to white supremacy,\\u201D Averette-Phillips alleged.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Averette-Phillips imagined that UCPD\\u2019s budget could be reappropriated for wages, housing and the needs of disabled students.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"It\\u2019s clear that not all efforts made by the local unions were entirely successful, but Hardikar suggests that their demands could be realized in the future.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CI absolutely understand the frustration that we didn\\u2019t win everything we set out to win,\\u201D Hardikar said in the email. \\u201CIt\\u2019s going to take a longer fight to transform the University in a way that fully addresses our needs.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"h2\", null, \"Union members rebuke SRU-UAW, UAW 2865 election practices\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW bargaining teams \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://dailycal.org/2022/12/16/uc-academic-student-employees-graduate-student-researchers-reach-tentative-agreement\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"tentatively agreed\"), \" on the local unions\\u2019 new contracts Dec. 16, 2022. After that, it was up to SRs and ASEs to ratify the contracts by a majority vote.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Following the local unions\\u2019 tentative agreements, many union members received calls, texts and emails multiple times a day, urging a \\u201Cyes\\u201D vote on contract ratifications. Lyu, however, did not get many.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CI have been a very prominent \\u2018no\\u2019 vote organizer,\\u201D Lyu said. \\u201CSo I didn't receive phone calls or text messages very often.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Unlike \\u201Cyes\\u201D voters, \\u201Cno\\u201D voters such as Lyu were not allowed to organize their peers to vote \\u201Cno\\u201D using UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW\\u2019s listings of member contact information. In fact, campaigning for a \\u201Cno\\u201D vote could be grounds for the UC system to file an unfair labor practice, or ULP, case against UAW for bad faith bargaining.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"After Kern High School District and California School Employees Association, Chapter #747, tentatively agreed on a contract for the 1997-98 and 1998-99 school years, two members of the association\\u2019s bargaining team campaigned against ratification \\u2014 one of them donning a \\u201CVOTE NO\\u201D button at work. In 1998, the California Public Employment Relations Board, or PERB, filed a complaint against the association for its members\\u2019 actions, calling it a failure of the association to bargain in good faith.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"While PERB complaints are not rulings or testaments to the union\\u2019s wrongdoing, ULP \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://dailycal.org/2022/12/05/strikers-allege-unfair-labor-practices-against-uc\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"allegations\"), \" can escalate to a formal hearing with an administrative law judge.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CThey do not allow people to organize a \\u2018no\\u2019 vote, where they can use the same exact resources to organize a \\u2018yes\\u2019 vote,\\u201D Lyu said. \\u201CIt's an extremely strange occasion that this happens in a democratic country.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Lyu is not the only union leader frustrated by the policy.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Out of SRU-UAW\\u2019s bargaining team, 13 voted in favor of SRs tentative agreement, and 7 voted against it. An even stiffer opposition, UAW 2865\\u2019s bargaining team voted 11 to 8.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CI\\u2019m really upset about it,\\u201D Cruz said, who voted against UAW 2865\\u2019s tentative agreement. \\u201CPro-\\u2018yes\\u2019 vote people monopolized the canvassing resources, emails, text messages and what-not. That obviously put them at a significant advantage,\\u201D he alleged.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Hardikar, however, alleged union members and bargainers who voted \\u201Cno\\u201D still campaigned for a \\u201Cno\\u201D vote with union contact lists \\u2014 which would be defying protocol.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Using union resources to campaign for a \\u201Cno\\u201D vote could land the union in a sticky legal situation, but UC-UAW communications did attempt to inform members on why some bargaining team members voted against the tentative agreement.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"A Dec. 17 email from \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    parentName: \"p\",\n    \"href\": \"mailto:communications@uc-uaw.org\"\n  }, \"communications@uc-uaw.org\"), \" included statements by bargaining team members from both the \\u201Cyes\\u201D and \\u201Cno\\u201D camps. The majority \\u201Cyes\\u201D statement recommended that union members vote \\u201Cyes.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Keeping with the PERB\\u2019s 1998 decision, dissenting bargaining team members did not urge a \\u201Cno\\u201D vote in their statement \\u2014 but rather recommended that union members discuss the offer.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"M\\xE9traux voted \\u201Cno\\u201D on UAW 2865\\u2019s tentative agreement. Still, she questioned the practice of recommending any kind of vote.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CThere are many lawsuits in the United States about elections and allegations of poll workers encouraging people to vote in a certain way, which they're not allowed to do,\\u201D M\\xE9traux said. \\u201CSo why is that allowed in this union?\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"It is unclear what kind of anti-ratification action qualifies as bad faith bargaining, though.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"A Dec. 14, 2020 PERB decision on union ULPs and bargaining conduct noted that \\u201Cthe level of dissenting bargaining team members\\u2019 active campaigning that would be sufficient to prove a union\\u2019s bad faith remains an unresolved issue.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Still, the PERB\\u2019s 1998 decision set a precedent. To avoid ULP charges, union policy sticks to it.\"), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"h2\", null, \"The strength and sacrifice of the strike\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Like UAW 2865\\u2019s last contract, the two new union contracts\\u2019 \\u201CNo Strikes\\u201D articles prohibit strikes that interfere with university operations. Once the contracts were ratified, UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW were contractually obligated to end the strike.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"But with dissenters both at the bargaining table and on the picket line, a question arises as to why many bargaining team members tentatively agreed upon contracts that left thousands unsatisfied.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CThe urgency behind trying to move towards the university's position quickly was this thought that our strike was weakening, because there were fewer people participating in it,\\u201D Cruz said. \\u201CThe number of people standing out on the picket line every day was (many bargaining team members\\u2019) indicator for the strength of our strike,\\u201D he continued.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Averette-Phillips and Lyu concurred that many union bargainers saw picket line participation as tantamount to the strength of the strike as a whole.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Each week, union members were eligible for $400 in strike pay per week from the union upon completing 20 hours of picketing or other strike assistance. But as the strike wore on, union leaders reported fewer people checking into the picket line.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"For some, that was a sign of a weakening strike. Others take issue with this interpretation, though.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CWe all know that a strike \\u2014 by its definition \\u2014 is a work stoppage,\\u201D Lyu said.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The strike wedged itself around Thanksgiving and winter break. Given the timing, Lyu and Cruz believe it was reasonable for academic workers to use the strike as an opportunity to leave campus and not picket, but still abstain from working.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Even with dwindling picket line attendance, Cruz thought that prolonging the strike \\u2014 blowing through grading deadlines and the next academic term \\u2014 would have pressured the UC system to make more generous offers.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Hardikar is not so convinced. \\u201CSome people would have preferred to continue striking, but that would not have guaranteed us a better offer,\\u201D she said in the email.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Once UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW ratified their contracts, the strike had lasted six weeks.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"For many students and academic workers across the UC system, it was six weeks of missed discussions, \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://dailycal.org/2023/01/18/uncertainty-continues-post-strike-as-students-face-fall-grade-delays\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"delays in grading\"), \" or hampered research.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CGiven the amount of sacrifice required by our students and workers ourselves, it's important to weigh the need felt by many to return to work with the need to improve our working conditions to the greatest extent possible before ending the strike,\\u201D Hardikar said.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"For now, UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW are prohibited from striking until their contracts with the UC system sunset in 2025.\"), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"h2\", null, \"What\\u2019s next for academic workers?\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"By 2025, UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW should be back at the bargaining table with UC negotiators. These upcoming years, however, have already presented a number of challenges for the university and its academic workers.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The UC system may \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://dailycal.org/2022/11/20/uc-may-dock-pay-from-striking-academic-workers-faculty\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"dock strikers' pay\"), \" \\u2014 sparking a cease-and-desist letter to the university on behalf of UAW 5810, UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW. In light of planned wage increases, the UCLA Faculty Association sponsored a letter urging the UC Office of the President not to pass along the new contracts\\u2019 costs to departments, research centers or faculty. Last Thursday, a letter from UAW 2865 and UAW 5810 presidents Rafael Jaime and Neal Sweeney asked UC president Michael Drake to reconsider potential reductions in graduate enrollment.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"UAW 2865\\u2019s last contract with the UC system lasted about four years. The UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW\\u2019s new contracts are set to expire May 30, 2025 \\u2014 a more brief two and a half years.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The shortened period of time has given hope to many who see it as an expedited opportunity to advocate for demands left unfulfilled by this last bargaining period.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CWe\\u2019re a lot stronger than we give ourselves credit for,\\u201D Cruz said. \\u201CWhatever we didn't get this time around in this particular contract fight, we can very much get in the next contract.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Before their 2022 contract negotiations, UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW sent out surveys to gauge union members\\u2019 priorities and interests for the upcoming bargaining period.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"With survey responses in hand, the UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW bargaining teams can fashion their negotiations with the UC system to address union members\\u2019 concerns. Yet some union members are not sure that union leadership will deliver on their demands.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Averette-Phillips thinks the shorter time period could be seen as hopeful, but he also believes it could be flawed. \\u201CMy concern is, in two years, even with 48,000 members on strike again, how can we possibly hope to win the sort of advances that I fully believe can be won, if the bargaining team refuses to hold strong?\\u201D he questioned.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Lyu said that assembling 48,000 academic workers into a strike is not just historic. It\\u2019s rare.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Between 1993 and 2021, 606 strikes of at least 1,000 workers occurred in the U.S., but only 20 involved 45,000 workers or more, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CI don't see why (a strike) would happen again in 2.5 years \\u2014 especially now that with such a contract, it's actually created a lot of splitting with the union,\\u201D Lyu said. Following ratifications, Lyu had to convince multiple Chinese union members to stay in the union; with NRST remission short of expectations, they felt little need to cede 1.44% of their salaries to union dues.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"If without the leverage of a strike, Lyu characterized hopes that bargaining in 2025 will yield more agreeable contracts for academic workers as \\u201Cquite overconfident.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Hardikar pointed out that union members can advocate for their interests even before contract renegotiations.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Off the bargaining table, academic workers have \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://www.dailycal.org/2022/08/02/time-to-take-action-campus-researchers-protest-alleged-bullying\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"protested alleged workplace bullying\"), \", secured expansions to NRST remission and \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://www.dailycal.org/2020/02/13/academic-workers-union-rallies-to-demand-increased-affordable-housing\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"rallied to increase affordable housing\"), \". On Jan. 22, 2023, less than a month after contract ratifications, the UAW 2865 joint council \\u2014 made up of elected head stewards and executive board members \\u2014 \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://dailycal.org/2023/01/25/united-power-joint-council-votes-unanimously-to-merge-uaw-2865-and-sru-unions\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"voted to merge with SRU-UAW\"), \".\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Unlike their recent bargaining season, SRs and ASEs will most likely bargain for one contract in 2025, according to Lyu.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"In response to the vote, 34 UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW members \\u2014 including Lyu \\u2014 signed an open letter raising concerns about the merger, with representation of SRs in UAW 2865 leadership and approval from SRs and ASEs among them.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Despite pushback, the passed resolution is clear on the potential strength of consolidating the two local unions \\u2013 drawing on years of ASEs\\u2019 and SRs\\u2019 joint efforts to unionize.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"\\u201CWhereas, the last two decades have demonstrated that GRS (SRs) and ASEs win the most when they fight together,\\u201D the resolution wrote.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Union leaders and many academic workers insist on a more united \\u201Cfight\\u201D following a historic strike. Its aftermath, however, reveals a union divided \\u2014 with many questioning the efforts, practices and future of UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW.\"), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"p\", null, mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Cruz received dozens of emails regarding the UC system\\u2019s Dec. 15, 2022, offer and its policies on access needs. In fact, the dozens of emails followed a UC system offer on access needs from another date.\")), mdx(\"br\", null), mdx(\"p\", null, mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"Cameron Fozi is a projects developer. Contact him at \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    parentName: \"em\",\n    \"href\": \"mailto:cfozi@dailycal.org\"\n  }, \"cfozi@dailycal.org\"), \", and follow him on Twitter at \", mdx(\"a\", {\n    href: \"https://twitter.com/cmrnfzi\",\n    target: \"_blank\"\n  }, \"@cmrnfzi\"), \".\")));\n}\n;\nMDXContent.isMDXComponent = true;","frontmatter":{"date":"January 31, 2023","title":"'Could have fought harder': Response to new contracts reveals a union divided","bylineName":["Cameron Fozi"],"bylineUrl":["https://www.dailycal.org/author/cfozi"],"subhead":"UAW 2865, SRU-UAW members split on labor contracts, election practices and strike strategy","aboutStory":"Data for this project come from UC-UAW email communications and the University of California.","hideHeroImage":null,"featuredImage":{"childImageSharp":{"resize":{"src":"/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/f3583/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.png","height":773,"width":1200},"gatsbyImageData":{"layout":"constrained","placeholder":{"fallback":"data:image/png;base64,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"},"images":{"fallback":{"src":"/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/3c25c/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.png","srcSet":"/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/b622f/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.png 188w,\n/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/284e1/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.png 375w,\n/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/3c25c/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.png 750w,\n/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/32735/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.png 1500w","sizes":"(min-width: 750px) 750px, 100vw"},"sources":[{"srcSet":"/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/ab1ed/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.webp 188w,\n/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/33fba/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.webp 375w,\n/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/70553/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.webp 750w,\n/static/b69149d20a54f48b623579a80405aa9e/8b09f/unions-hsi-min-chan-ss.webp 1500w","type":"image/webp","sizes":"(min-width: 750px) 750px, 100vw"}]},"width":750,"height":483}}},"imageAttribution":"Hsi-Min Chan | Senior Staff","imageCaption1":null,"embeddedImages":null}}},"pageContext":{"slug":"2023-01-31-union-vote"}},
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