Thousands of healthcare, research and technology employees at the University of California quit their jobs Wednesday, addressing a lack of staffing at the university and explaining it as a limitation on employees’ ability to raise concerns about workplace situations. I urged it to end the
The planned three-day strike comes amidst tensions between the 10-campus UC system and university experts and technical employees CWA local 9119.
Strikes can not only affect hospital and clinic operations, but they can also affect research on a wide range of healthcare, climate and other issues.
UC spokesman Heather Hansen said during the strike that the university system is “ready to make every effort to ensure critical operation of the university system, including patient care, and UC patients, students and faculty members. , and states that they are ready to continue excellence. Staff are looking forward to it.”
Workers represented by UPTE Union include nurse case managers, mental health counselors, optometrists, pharmacists, physical therapists, clinical researchers, IT analysts, and animal health technicians.
Among the members of the Striking Union are lab technicians at the California Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety. Davis is an integral lab in California’s efforts to track and prevent avian influenza spreading across herds of cattle.
Notable workers include particle accelerators, mechanical engineers, radiation management engineers, and operators of other workers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. This is the energy research center where the university system manages on behalf of the federal government.
Upte said the university called for a strike because it did not negotiate in good faith with negotiations that began last June. Unions accusing the university system of illegally imposing “radical” restrictions on where workers can picket, their ability to speak freely about lack of staffing and other workplace issues.
In January, UPTE filed a 490-page unfair labor practice claim with the California Public Employment Relations Commission. For example, the rules prohibit passing flyers more than 50 feet from the doors of UC San Francisco and UC Davis, but UC Picut meters must remain 30 feet from the aisle, road, or door. I’m requesting.
The university denied it was facing a staffing crisis and said it provided robust wages and benefits. Hansen, a UC spokesman, accused him of walking away from negotiations last month.
“We continued reaching out,” Hansen said in an email. Unions need to “walking walks and actually negotiate in good faith.”
The university proposes a 5% increase in full wages and a 3% increase in wages from July 1st in its second and third years of contract. They also offered to raise wages for all low-paid employees to at least $25 an hour by July 1st.
Regarding speech restrictions, Hansen said the rules are part of an effort to clarify the use of public property by UC students and workers. The university will negotiate the impact it will have on member rights when it implemented the rules last fall, she said.
“We fully respect the rights of organizations to engage in expressive activities on issues that are important to membership,” Hansen said.
However, she added: “Universities have clear authority to set reasonable rules for our property, including when, where, and how people express themselves. These rules silence someone. It’s not about letting them or targeting unions. They’re there so everyone in the UC community can use our place for learning, research and essential conversations.”
Workers voted earlier this month to approve the strike.
UCSF nurse case manager Shaun Singh said he was seeing the impact of short staffing, including the speed at which the 30 beds in the hospital’s emergency department was filled. Dozens of overflow patients are placed in rolling beds lined up in the hallway. He said these patients may wait two to three days before being admitted to another department in haphazard circumstances with little privacy.
Singh said he is usually supposed to handle caseloads of 20 patients, but if other nurses are sick, it can often swell to 40 people. The large caseload makes it difficult for patients to be discharged quickly, leading to longer stays in hospitals, Singh said.
Singh said, “When you call illness, there are patients who are not receiving that care.”
UC spokesman Hansen said UC employees, represented by UPTE, have left their jobs at below national average rates, with employee staff having increased by 13% since 2022. They consistently meet or exceed quality standards for patient safety and care.
Hansen did not respond to questions about specific challenges and concerns raised by UCSF workers. UCSF did not respond to requests for comment.
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