The California Faculty Association (CFA) authorized and confirmed that they are willing to strike if leaders from the California State University (CSU) system do not meet their demands to increase their pay and to provide better working conditions.
The California Faculty Association union members across 23 campuses voted in majority to authorize a strike on Sunday, according to their website.
The union has multiple demands including a 12% pay increase for faculty, having the CSU hire more mental health counselors for students, accessible lactation rooms and gender-inclusive restrooms, according to the same source.
Ray Buyco, senior history lecturer at San José State and the university’s California Faculty Association chapter president, said the union is asking for a 12% raise in pay for all faculty members to adjust for inflation and high living costs in the state.
“We are not paid largely enough to support ourselves in the Bay Area,” Buyco said.
Christopher Cox, sociology senior lecturer and SJSU’s associate vice president for racial and social justice North, said many faculty members are having a difficult time being able to meet their basic needs.
“A huge chunk of quality of life has to do with your income and your pay,” Cox said.
He said this is more difficult for faculty members who are not tenured, including lecturers, coaches, counselors and librarians.
“Oftentimes (they) have to figure out ways to make up for income (by) trying to teach more classes in more places just to be able to make ends meet,” Cox said. “All of that, it definitely affects the quality of life.”
Karin Jeffery, sociology and psychology senior lecturer and vice president and co-chair of the membership and organizing committee for SJSU’s chapter in the California Faculty Association, said the union has voted to authorize a strike, which means they have confirmed that the majority of its union members are willing to go on strike if the union is prepared.
Jeffery said the process to decide whether or not to strike starts with the CSU and the California Faculty Association negotiating any disagreements they have on any contracts.
She said if the two parties can’t come to any agreements, an independent third party mediator will attempt to moderate the discussion.
Jeffery said if both parties are still unable to reach any agreements after a mediator is involved, another independent third-party representative will start the process of fact-finding.
She said fact-finding is the process of examining the claims from both parties to see if the facts and arguments from both groups are accurate.
Jeffery said the third-party representative finished going through the process of fact-finding on Sunday.
“Nothing will happen before that report is released,” she said.
Sabrina Pinnell, political science senior lecturer and the secretary for SJSU’s chapter in the California Faculty Association, said the union is estimating that the report will be finished within the next two to three weeks.
Pinnell said once the report is published, there is a 10 day cool-off or blackout period where both sides are not allowed to make public comments, but will continue negotiations behind closed doors.
“They can (make a) last ditch attempt to negotiate at that point,” Pinnell said.
Jeffery said if that offer doesn’t meet the union’s demands, the California Faculty Association may decide to strike.
She said however, the union could not legally go on strike until a majority vote from union members was confirmed.
“All that has happened is (a) vote to authorize a strike has taken place,” Jeffery said. “(This) absolutely does not mean that a strike will happen or that it's inevitable.”
Jeffery said most faculty members should not “jump the gun” and should continue teaching their classes as usual until the union asks them to go on strike.
Pinnell said the California Faculty Association appears to be closer to going on strike than before in comparison to previous negotiations.
“It feels like they’re talking over us,” Pinnell said. “They’ve already determined what the next 20 years are going to look like. I'd like to be optimistic here, but one of the reasons I’m thinking a strike might actually happen is because they don’t want to talk about this.”
Cox said the CSU still has an opportunity to come back to negotiate and to make a plan to meet their demands, but have not shown interest taking their demands seriously.
He also said although faculty members do not want to go on strike, they are also not going to avoid a strike if the CSU does not meet their demands.
“What’s not going to happen is we’re not going to just turn around and say, ‘O.K., well, we’ll just go home then because you don’t want to actually engage with us to pay us properly and treat (us) with the respect we deserve,’ ” Cox said. “If that’s the case, and no, we’re not going to avoid a strike.”
