UPTE President Dan Russell: "With one month before our contracts expire, UC continues bargaining in bad faith and commits other unfair practices outside of bargaining."
After 4 months of bargaining, we are now just a month away from our the expiration of our contracts. Instead of taking our concerns, our testimony, or our demands seriously, UC continues bargaining in bad faith and commits other unfair practices outside of bargaining.
One of UC's most egregious unfair labor practices is their failure to bargain in good faith over our demands that impact staffing levels. On April 12, 2023, we requested information that would help us better understand the depths of the recruitment and retention crisis, such as the number of vacant positions in UPTE job titles across the state. 18 months later, we have yet to receive any of this information.
Why is UC withholding this data? Do they not want the public to know how many budgeted healthcare providers, researchers, and technical positions are being left empty while patient care, research, and students suffer?
Here's some of what we do know about how UC's misplaced priorities are fueling short staffing that is affecting students, patients and research:
Counseling provider vacancy rates have skyrocketed from pre-pandemic levels of around 10-11% to a staggering 23.29%. Rather than providing competitive pay to recruit and retain counselors, UC paid $30.8 million to Lyra, a venture capital-backed company that employs a UCSF professor to make misleading claims about Lyra's efficacy.
43% of all UC career staff surveyed answered that they are seriously considering leaving the UC system. 54% of UPTE staff with career appointments have been hired in the last 5 years.
Fixing this recruitment and retention crisis is core to our contract campaign - but UC is showing no urgency in addressing it.
Last month, the UC Regents approved raises of 16-39% for UC Chancellors. Yet, they still expect us to accept a 5% raise that will leave us behind inflation?
Enough is enough. After 4 months of bargaining, we are now just a month away from our contracts being expired. Instead of listening to your demands, concerns, and testimony, UC continues bargaining in bad faith and commits other unfair practices outside of bargaining.
We have our 8th bargaining session with UC on Thursday and Friday. Watch for our next bargaining update and steps to let UC know that they need to take this more seriously.
In solidarity,
Dan Russell
UPTE President & Chief Negotiator