The California State University and United Auto Workers Local 4123, a union representing academic student employees, are awaiting the decision of a neutral third-party arbitrator in order to resolve disputes that have stalled collective bargaining for nearly two years.
Rich Anderson, president of Local 4123, which represents teaching, graduate and instructional student assistants at the CSU, said the “sticking point” is tuition fee waivers.
“[Academic student employees] are the only employee group that must pay fees to be employed,” said Anderson, suggesting that a rise in fees may potentially cost academic student employees their jobs.
But crippling budget cuts have placed the CSU and Local 4123 at odds.
“The CSU is not proposing to implement fee waivers given the well-documented significant reduction in state funding support that the CSU has experienced over the past few years,” CSU media relations specialist Erik Fallis, said via email. “CSU Long Beach alone has taken a 2010-11 base budget reduction of nearly $48 million.”
According to Anderson, the union understands it is asking for economic benefits during “bad economic times,” but has not ruled out a strike.
“Our goal is not to strike but … to reach an agreement,” said Anderson, insisting that the union is working to avoid labor stoppage.
The university, however, is awaiting the release of the neutral arbitrator’s decision before labor stoppage is considered.
“No findings have been presented, and at this point, it would be premature to speculate on any scenario that might occur after a fact-finding report is released,” Fallis said.
In December 2008, the union planned to strike but later reneged after State Senator President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg intervened as a mediator.
Before the planned strike, the union had accused the CSU of engaging in unfair bargaining practices, filing complaints with the California Public Employment Relations Board, or PERB, in November 2008. According to Local 4123’s website, the university canceled a number of bargaining meetings.
Anderson maintains that the CSU has left these practices.
The CSU twice filed for impasse with PERB during collective bargaining, withdrawing the first.
Impasse is a process that includes intervention and mediation by state government to resolve stalled bargaining. The process also legally prevents a union from striking.
PERB certified the CSU’s second petition for impasse in January 2009. Fallis contends this petition was filed mutually.
“The CSU and UAW have met numerous times for countless hours over the course of the negotiations, before the parties jointly filed for impasse,” Fallis said.
After the certification, collective bargaining issues between the union and the university were referred to a mediator and then finally to the neutral arbitrator.
According to Anderson, the decision of the arbitrator will be released “any day now.”
Local 4123 negotiated its first contract with the CSU in 2005, securing a 15 percent pay increase for teaching and graduate assistants as well as a $3 increase per hour — up to $10 per hour — for instructional student assistants. This contract expired in 2008 but is still being utilized during current bargaining, Anderson said.
Local 4123 represents more than 6,000 employees across the CSU. While the union negotiates for all academic student employees not all of them are members.
Union members pay 1.15 percent of their position’s average salary — calculated yearly — in union dues. According to Anderson, graduate assistants pay $16.93, teaching assistants pay $9.17 and instructional student assistants pay $3.65, per month.
Based on these numbers, graduate, teaching and instructional student assistants receive an average monthly salary of $1,472.17, $797.39 and $317.39, respectively.
In 2007, University of California academic student employees secured a contract that granted “partial fee remission of 100 percent of annual education and registration fees.”
“We want equal pay for equal work,” Anderson said.
Local 4123 has pledged to honor the decision of the neutral arbitrator.
The union stated on its website “In the spirit of avoiding unnecessary disruption and promoting cooperative labor relations on campus, UAW 4123 pledges to support the fact-finder’s recommendations.”
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