2008 Woodie Awards
CFA says 'yes' to strikes
Mitchell Alan Parker
Issue date: 3/22/07 Section: News
"I don't want to strike, but I will" - the motto used by the majority of California Faculty Association union members - inched closer yesterday to becoming a realization.
Results from a vote held last week by the CFA on whether to strike if it and the CSU don't reach an agreement on faculty wages, show that 94 percent of members who voted support job action, said CFA representative Alice Sunshine.
"I support it," said Kevin Winthrow, a senior majoring in justice studies. "I think they deserve higher pay."
According to Sunshine, there was an 81 percent voter turnout by CFA members throughout the 23-campus California State University system.
"We thought it would be big," Sunshine said. "But not this big."
However, CSU spokesman Paul Browning pointed out that since only roughly 8,100 faculty members voted, that represents only a little over a quarter of the 23,000 professors, librarians, counselors and coaches in the CSU system.
"That's not the majority view of all faculty," Browning said.
A report will be released on Mar. 26 that will conclude the contract-negotiating period, Sunshine said. The report is part of a fact finding effort that brought in a third party mediator to make recommendations on how the CFA and CSU can come to an agreement over faculty wages. If an agreement between the two parties still isn't reached, the CFA has a legal right to strike.
"Hopefully there'll be some movement on the chancellor's part," said Liz Cara, the CFA president at SJSU and a professor of occupational therapy. "If not, then we'll go ahead with a strike. We are definitely prepared for it now."
If it does engage in job action, the CFA will hold a two-day rolling strike, meaning that campuses in the CSU system will hold strikes at varying times for two days each.
"We're doing this so we don't hurt our students," Cara said.
But at least one student feels differently about the potential of some faculty not showing up to class for two days.
Results from a vote held last week by the CFA on whether to strike if it and the CSU don't reach an agreement on faculty wages, show that 94 percent of members who voted support job action, said CFA representative Alice Sunshine.
"I support it," said Kevin Winthrow, a senior majoring in justice studies. "I think they deserve higher pay."
According to Sunshine, there was an 81 percent voter turnout by CFA members throughout the 23-campus California State University system.
"We thought it would be big," Sunshine said. "But not this big."
However, CSU spokesman Paul Browning pointed out that since only roughly 8,100 faculty members voted, that represents only a little over a quarter of the 23,000 professors, librarians, counselors and coaches in the CSU system.
"That's not the majority view of all faculty," Browning said.
A report will be released on Mar. 26 that will conclude the contract-negotiating period, Sunshine said. The report is part of a fact finding effort that brought in a third party mediator to make recommendations on how the CFA and CSU can come to an agreement over faculty wages. If an agreement between the two parties still isn't reached, the CFA has a legal right to strike.
"Hopefully there'll be some movement on the chancellor's part," said Liz Cara, the CFA president at SJSU and a professor of occupational therapy. "If not, then we'll go ahead with a strike. We are definitely prepared for it now."
If it does engage in job action, the CFA will hold a two-day rolling strike, meaning that campuses in the CSU system will hold strikes at varying times for two days each.
"We're doing this so we don't hurt our students," Cara said.
But at least one student feels differently about the potential of some faculty not showing up to class for two days.
Be the first to comment on this story