Members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 3299 began a two-day Unfair Labor Practice strike across University of California (UC) campuses and Medical Centers on Nov. 20 and 21.
The UC campus-wide strikes were organized after AFSCME Local 3299 filed an unfair practice charge with the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) in October. The union alleges that the UC violated labor practices by “failing and refusing to bargain in good faith” in light of the expiration of the Patient Care Technical contract in July and expiration of the Service contract on Oct. 31.
Local 3299-represented workers on campus held green signs that read “ON STRIKE” and danced to Spanish music outside of Aldrich Hall. On both days, strikers began rallying on Ring Road by the Gateway Study Center. Union members at the UCI Medical Center rallied down Chapman Street and City Drive, according to AFSCME Local 3299 Treasurer and UCI Hospital Unit Service Coordinator Monica De Leon.
“I’ve been a worker here at UCI for 19 years, and so, you know, this is not my first time [striking], but I will, you know, never stop fighting for my family,” De Leon told New University. “For myself, I have to start thinking about my future, making sure that my health care is always affordable, you know, making sure that, like, I’m able to retire with dignity.”
Primary grievances cited for the strike include an up to 11% increase in healthcare costs for workers and a “staff vacancy crisis.” Local 3299 further alleges that the UC withheld critical information amid bargaining and came unprepared for bargaining meetings with the union.
Local 3299 represents over 37,000 UC workers – primarily service, patient care and skilled craft workers – at all ten UC campuses as well as medical centers, clinics and research laboratories across the system. The strike itself was authorized late last month with a 99% support vote.
On the second day of the strike, Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine at UCI, Student’s for Justice in Palestine at UCI and UCI Divest rallied with Local 3299 workers at 1 p.m. All four groups chanted down Ring Road, going past Donald Bren Hall and Brandywine.
Tessa, a UCI Divest member and student who asked to go by a pseudonym, spoke about why it was important for her and other students to support the workers during their strike.
“We don’t want to be complicit in the genocide on Gaza of our own people, and the university forces us to be through our tuition,” Tessa told New University. “So we want the university to hear our demands and reinvest in students and workers and end their [complicitness] in the genocide by ending their divestment and weapon manufacturers.”
Following the announcement of the strike, the UC wrote in a statement on Nov. 8 that they “fundamentally disagree” with the union’s allegations and detailed the proposals made during negotiations. They noted that the UC president is working with the UC Health System to “mitigate the potential impacts of the strike.”
“AFSCME’s strike notice is not a surprise, but it is premature and is a disheartening development, nonetheless,” the statement reads. “We remain willing and open to meeting with AFSCME to negotiate the terms of their contract, and we are hopeful of a quick resolution.”
Local 3299 and the UC had been engaged in negotiations since January, but union representatives declared an impasse on July 24 after both parties failed to come to an agreement. PERB-moderated mediation fell through within hours in August.
The UC alleges that collaboration between the two parties ceased in May of this year following a cease in response from union representatives. The UC further claims that the impasse declared in July was made despite their “clear willingness to continue to negotiate contract terms.” In an additional statement, the UC claims that rising healthcare costs is a national issue that is now affecting the UC.
“Health care costs are rising nationally, and the University of California is not immune. These increases are consistent with other public employers in California,” the UC stated in an additional statement. “Despite increasing costs, UC remains committed to providing all employees with equitable access to affordable health care.”
The strike came after Local 3299 led a series of state-wide rallies on Oct. 9. Union members demanded wage increases and affordable housing for UC service and patient care workers.
UC worker and union member Maria Munoz spoke about how UC Regents’ recent raises are unfair in comparison to UC workers’ struggles. Union member Cristian Fuentes translated her remarks.
“A lot of [UC chancellors] go around [with] raises from $250,000,” Fuentes told New University. “They get billions of dollars in profit. And they can’t even support the workers.”
When asked about her struggles with the UC’s wage policies for its workers, Munoz stated that her own living situation has been affected.
“She said that she’s personally affected [by] it. She has to live in a garage. And the thing is there is no permit to live in the garage, so now she’s getting kicked out of the garage,” Fuentes said in translation.
Makyla McLeod is a Staff Writer for the fall 2024 quarter. She can be reached at msmcleod@uci.edu.
Skylar Paxton is the Fall 2024 Co-Managing Editor. She can be reached at paxtons@uci.edu.
Edited by Karen Wang and Annabelle Aguirre