Published 2012-05-08T20:29:00Z”/>
Aubrey Crosby
Faculty members across the California State University system voted to authorize a strike in the fall if contract negotiations with the CSU don’t lead to an agreement.
After three days of talks, negotiations Saturday broke down, which means the fact-finding process will now begin, according to a CSU press release. A neutral fact-finding panel will be appointed to make a recommendation to settle negotiations between the CSU and the faculty union.
The CSU, the release states, believed it addressed faculty concerns including the appointment and evaluation of temporary faculty and fee waivers for employees, according to the release. An exception was that the CSU said it would not pay for leave time used by the faculty union president and Political Action Committee positions to conduct union business.
About 70 percent of approximately 12,000 California Faculty Association members participated in the strike vote, which took place from April 16-26, said Vince Ornelas, CFA Chico State chapter president.
About 95 percent of the faculty members who voted, voted in favor of the strike initiative, Ornelas said.
“We don’t have exact numbers, but there were very few dissident votes,” he said.
The faculty voted to give the CFA the authority to have a two-day rolling strike throughout the 23 CSUs, Ornelas said. It is likely that a strike would roll through the system, starting with one campus and going through each CSU university before starting over.
When the CFA voted for the authority to initiate a strike in 2007, the CSU pulled through and came to the bargaining table 24 hours before the strike would have started, said Susan Green, the CFA Chico State chapter treasurer.
The vote is still “significantly premature,” said Mike Uhlenkamp, a spokesman for the CSU Chancellor’s Office.
“This vote does not necessarily mean they will go on strike,” Uhlenkamp said. “There is still a long process to continue, and the next part hasn’t begun yet.”
If the fact-finding process does not create a settlement, the CSU offers its best and final offer, he said. After that, the CFA can legally strike.
Until the process is over, the strike authorization vote remains irrelevant, said Erik Fallis, a spokesman for the CSU Chancellor’s Office.
“We have both expressed an interest in agreeing and are trying to reach an agreement that both sides can support, one that will be in the best interests of the students and faculty,” he said.
While it is still unclear whether the faculty will strike next semester, students have shown concern for the side effects of the strike, such as canceled classes.
Saulo Mireles, a senior nursing major, has heard professors talk about the issue, he said.
“But we would end up missing class time,” he said. “How would we be expected to make that up?”
Although professors have a right to ask for what they want, Sarah Santich, a freshman biology major, doesn’t like the side effects, she said.
“It’s just sad that they are taking that out of our class time,” she said.
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<strong>Aubrey Crosby can be reached at</strong>
<em>[email protected]</em>
