Bargaining Update #8: August 28-30, 2001, UCSC
Summary:
- UC finally makes counter offers to CUE's proposals.
- Catastrophic Leave at UCSD - not the same as other campuses?
- UC's full wage proposal at last.
UC finally makes counter offers
CUE and UC met at UC Santa Cruz August 28-30, 2001. Although UC did not
spend much time at the table much of second day, UC finally gave CUE its
first written counter proposals to the contract proposals CUE submitted in
mid-July. We received responses on Access/Union Rights, Agreement,
Catastrophic Leave, Corrective Action, Performance Evaluations,
Resignation/Job Abandonment, and Subcontracting.
Most of UC's proposals were close to the language CUE won in our first
contract. One article in which UC proposed significant changes was
Access/Union Rights. This article currently provides that UC will release
1 CUE member from each campus with pay to participate in bargaining to a
total of not more than 11, including the Merced campus. UC proposes to
continue to release up to 11 representatives BUT to provide pay for only
4. In the same article, UC proposed to limit CUE access to clericals on
the campuses, the hospitals, and the laboratory.
Catastrophic Leave - not the same for UCSD?
In the discussion concerning Catastrophic Leave, the CUE bargaining team
heard confirmation that at UC San Diego clerical employees are only allowed
to donate or receive leave donations from other clericals. No such
restrictions apply to any other group of employees who are allowed to
donate and receive leave donations across bargaining-unit lines.
UC's full wage proposal at last.
On the last day of bargaining UC offered CUE its wage proposal.
A
copy of
the proposal follows this update. Here again is a summary:
- 0.9% as of November 1, 2001 (not October 1, 2001)
- no merits for 2001-2002
UC explained that the economy is bad and the state has given UC very little
money this year. (At no time has the University
ever claimed that they did not have enough money to pay for CUE's full wage
proposal.) Again, CUE responded that it is well known that UC receives less
than 25% of its funding from the state; that UC has billions in
unrestricted reserves; and that UC needs to pay clericals a decent wage.
CUE members at UCSC held a well-attended and lively rally outside the
bargaining room Wednesday at noon. The rally was addressed by several
speakers. Labor Studies Professor Dana Frank gave a very informative and
exciting talk about the history of our struggle and our need to stick
together. She is confident that we will win a decent contract from UC.
UC's chief negotiator, Sharon Hayden, will be on vacation for three weeks
in September. However, UCOP labor relations has appointed Peter Chester to
replace her. We have been informed that he has full authority to bargain.
Next Bargaining sessions are:
Sept 13-14, 2001 at UC Davis at Memorial Union
Sept 26-27, 2001 at UCOP in Oakland at the Kaiser Center (300 Lakeside Drive)
3 days during the second week of October at UC Santa Barbara
Please join us when we are on your campus.
CUE's Bargaining Team:
- Margy Wilkinson, Chief Negotiator
- Chris Benoit, Lead Negotiator
- Mark Covington, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Becky Croll, Davis
- Hilary FitzGerald-Nicholson, Berkeley / UCOP
- Deborah Freeman, San Francisco
- Jody Galluzzi, San Diego
- Elaine Hernandez, Irvine
- Jack Joshua, Santa Barbara
- Connie McGrath, Riverside
- Zoe Sodja, Santa Cruz
- Anita Windom-Jones, Los Angeles
