February 2-4 RPSPs and SSAPs met at the bargaining table with UC management for the three days leading up to our ULP Strike Authorization Vote. Due to mounting pressure, management finally reached agreement with us on some important, basic contract articles such as Grievance and Arbitration, but they have still not resolved their unfair labor practices that are preventing progress on our top priorities. You can help keep up the pressure by asking your coworkers to join you in voting YES on the ULP Strike Authorization Vote. Thousands of others have already voted and every vote makes an impact!
By helping get out the vote, you can do something tangible to push management to resolve their unfair labor practices that remain serious obstacles to bargaining over improved job security, fair pay, and workload protections for all of us.
This vote is already having an effect. On the eve of our SAV, management requested more bargaining dates in February and March via mediation through the Public Employment Relations Board. Our bargaining teams discussed and agreed to enter this process in the hope that it will move negotiations more quickly toward the strongest possible contract. Yet it is still imperative that management fulfill their legal obligation to provide us with the information needed to bargain and resolve their numerous other unfair labor practices.
The first two mediation dates are February 17-18th. This is a new phase in our contract campaign, showing that our collective power can bring real decision-makers to the table so that we can negotiate the strongest first contract possible. We will have more information about next steps for mediation soon. What we know for sure is that only through demonstrating our power through this ULP Strike Authorization Vote can we ensure UC Management will bargain in good faith through mediation and resolve their unfair labor practices.
During our sessions we came to tentative agreements on four articles that together strengthen job security, expand our rights in the workplace, and ensure that our contract can be enforced. They are:
Discipline and Dismissal
Grievance and Arbitration
Union Access and Rights
Union Security
Check these and our other tentatively agreed articles on the SSAP and RPSP Bargaining Tracker!
In the meantime, if you have questions about the SAV or how to get involved, schedule a meeting with another RPSP or SSAP at your campus here: Meet with a fellow RPSP or SSAP!
