| Coalition of University Employees (CUE) | 2855 Telegraph Ave., Suite #302, Berkeley, CA 94705 Contact CUE (510) 845-2221 (phone), (510) 845-7444 (FAX) |
June 10, 2005
Peter Chester, Chief Negotiator
Office of Senior Vice President
Business and Finance
Office of the President
300 Lakeside Dr 12th Fl
Oakland, CA 94612
Via: FAX 510/268-0602 & US Mail
Dear Peter:
CUE provides this Wage proposal, dated June 10, 2005, as a counter proposal to the University Proposal #4 which was submitted June 3, 2005 at the conclusion of our bargaining sessions in Riverside. CUE met for an additional day of bargaining with the university the following week on Tuesday, June 7, at the Lab in Berkeley in response to your request of June 3, and in the hopes of achieving movement toward our shared objective of reaching a fair and equitable wage agreement.
Since conclusion of talks in December 2004 and prior to our bargaining sessions in Davis, May 3-5, you resisted discussion of wages at the bargaining table. In Irvine CUE presented counters to several non-economic articles which the university presented as a package. The scheduled and agreed upon agenda for the Davis session was discussion of parking increases with the parking and transportation directors of the northern campuses.
During the Davis session you attempted to demean the CUE bargainers and represented that the last wage proposal put forward by CUE was in the "stratosphere". Again in Riverside you stated that the CUE proposal was "an insult" to the university and in your letter of June 3, 2005 you stated "despite the fact that the University has not received a substantive counter proposal on wages from CUE." Previously, I have reminded you that disparaging characterizations of the CUE proposals does not assist in the realization of an agreement between the parties. On the contrary it gives the appearance that your intention is not for the parties to reach an agreement but rather is part of a strategy to force the negotiations to impasse.
CUE does not agree with your conclusion "that the negotiations are at a stage where further traditional meeting and confirming would be futile" and we are not willing to join the university in submitting a joint declaration of impasse to PERB at this time.
On June 7 at the Lab we briefly discussed elements that CUE would be presenting in our counter proposal to the university's wage proposal. I must say that your response was disappointing and, unlike the session with the Lab negotiators, did not demonstrate willingness on your part to move toward agreement.
As I indicated to you on June 7 we are submitting this wage proposal contingent upon resolution of the final agreement. It is not reasonable to expect that we would have examined and formulated counter proposals to the total package that was submitted in Riverside on Friday, June 3, 2005 near the close of the session. Additionally, you represented that the university was willing or had decided to revert to current contract language in several proposals that are already on the table and it isn't clear which articles you are referencing.
I look forward to and expect to discuss with you this counter proposal that CUE is submitting to the university in response to the university Wage Proposal #4 in San Francisco on June 21-23 at the previously scheduled bargaining session.
Sincerely,
Amatullah Alaji-Sabrie
CUE Chief Negotiator
cc: CUE statewide executive board
CUE bargaining team members
Attorney Ari Krantz
Executive Director -- Labor Relations Howard Pripas
Associate Vice President Boyette
CX Unit