UPTE members at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography take their fight for fair working conditions to management's doorstep

UPTE members at Scripps Institution of Oceanography conduct and support vital research aimed at better understanding our oceans and our climate's health. These members work in a variety of important roles, including as staff research associates, mechanicians, technicians, and more. Without them, the essential work that Scripps does to understand and protect the planet, as well as find solutions to environmental challenges, would not be possible.

For many members, this work requires extensive travel, time away from home, and time at sea working in some of the world's most extreme environments. Some members regularly spend as much as six months out of the year away from home, but unfortunately they are not compensated fairly for this time. Members are asked to work seven days a week for months at a time. The weekends they work through are lost. For members to get the rest needed at the end of such a long assignment, they must use their vacation leave benefits. 

Last week, we marched on our boss at Scripps to deliver a petition signed by nearly 150 people demanding changes that would fairly and equitably compensate people for their time at sea, while also making sure they are afforded the same amount of time off every other university employee enjoys. These members are essentially fighting for a five day work week—something organized labor made the standard decades ago. 

"We need to be able to hang on to quality technicians. Our job out on the ships is to make sure everybody's being safe so the more turnover we have, the less safe we are out at sea. On top of that, the people who stick around end up having to pick up the slack of having a group that's constantly being trained," said Josh Manger, a Marine Research Technician at Scripps. "Just recently we had to put a less experienced tech out on a cruise because we were short-staffed. The science on that cruise suffered because the person who was put in that position to fill in just didn't have the skills to make sure that the scientists got all the data without incident. Some equipment was broken and some data was lost as a result. We need to reach an agreement on these policy changes so we can keep good technicians around and maintain a high level of safety aboard our ships."

Josh estimates that it takes two to three years to get a technician up to speed to be able to safely perform their job duties at sea with minimal supervision. It's not just technicians who are suffering under the unfair sea pay policy—staff research associates are also struggling with low morale, burnout, and difficulty making ends meet as a result of unfair compensation and inadequate time at home.

Members expressed their frustration that Scripps and UCSD have yet to make a proposal that respects our time at work. Instead they have employed union busting delay tactics for years and have failed to bargain with our members in good faith. 

Scripps prides itself on being a global leader in understanding our planet, finding solutions to mitigate the impacts of climate change, and training the next generation of scientific and environmental leaders. To achieve these goals, we we also need Scripps to be a leader in creating a fair and equitable workplace for the members who turn these goals into realities.