Academic student employee strike hinges on union vote

By Martha Martinez

Grades for undergraduate students could potentially be withheld if the California State University system refuses to recognize a union being formed by academic student employees (ASEs).

The United Auto Workers and the California Alliance of Academic Students Employees is a union representing a majority of the 6,000 teaching associates, graduate assistants, tutors and graders in the CSU system.

UAW/CAASE has approximately 710,000 active members and has contracts with more than 3,200 employers. University of California system ASEs are represented by the union.

Teaching associates are asking to be recognized as a union in order to be able to bargain for better wages, medical benefits and credibility.

“ (Teaching associates) aren't just kids teaching classes,” Communications department teaching associate James Bartram said, “we’re people with degrees who should be treated with professional respect.”

Medical benefits and intellectual freedom are among the issues Bartram said he is hoping to gain.

“ (Teaching associates) are given a book and told, ‘teach the book,’” Bartram said. “We want to be able to teach based on our best judgment.”

An increased number of courses are being taught by teaching associates because they work for less than part-time teachers, he said.

Teaching associates can either be treated as professionals, or as expendable and temporary help, and how they are treated is important to the issue, Bartram said.

UAW/CAASE spokesperson Xochitl Lopez said that because the CSU has refused to recognize the union, strike authorization votes are being held on CSU campuses.

Votes from student employees at Fresno State, which were taken by UAW representatives Monday and Tuesday, will be tallied with votes from the rest of the campuses. The votes will indicate whether a strike is authorized.

“ We’re hoping CSU will make a strike unnecessary,” Lopez said.

Failure to be recognized by the CSU left one student employee feeling unappreciated.

“ I feel disrespected and devalued,” teaching associate for the English department Nigel Medhurst said.

Medhurst said the most important issues he is concerned with are trying to get a fee waiver and receiving health benefits.

Medhurst’s wage has been the same for several years and he is also paying tuition.

“ We are giving money to get money,” Medhurst said, “and it doesn't make sense.”

Various strategies can be used by the ASEs in the bargaining process with the CSU.

Bartram said refusal to teach courses is one way of dealing with the situation, but said he would push for grades to be withheld instead.

The situation must be explained to students in order to get support from them, which is a big goal, Bartram said.

Grades will “eventually” be given to students, Bartram said.

Lopez said the end of the year and finals are approaching but specifics on the union’s bargaining plans, “for strategic reasons,” are not being discussed.

Lopez said the CSU is taking away the ASEs Democratic rights by refusing to recognize the union.

Since the majority of the student employees are recognizing the UAW/CAASE as their union, “state law says that they should recognize us,” Lopez said.

UAW/CAASE has submitted a majority support, Les Chisholm, regional director of the California Public Employment Relations Board said.

PERB is looking at issues with respect to the appropriate existing bargaining units Chisholm said.

“ The process o f recognition is under investigation,” he said.

A bargaining unit is the grouping of employees for purposes of bargaining. CSU has 10 existing bargaining units, including faculty and academic support units.

The CSU hired anti-union lawyers to delay the process of recognition, Lopez said. The money could be better spent during the time of budget crisis, she said.

“ The CSU is not prepared to make any statements,” spokesperson for the CSU chancellor’s office Clara Potes-Fellow said.

The CSU is working on the issue and no decisions have been made, she said.