Deal Reached Mere Hours Before Thousands Of UC Instructors Were Set To Strike
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – A strike has been averted, just hours before about 6,000 instructors in the University of California system were set to walk off the job.
University Council-AFT, the union which represents adjunct professors and other faculty, announced just after 4:30 a.m. Wednesday morning that a tentative agreement had been reached between its members and the UC system.
The two sides later released a joint statement, which read in part: "The deal includes significant improvements in crucial areas, including job stability, workload, and compensation, benefitting over 6,500 bargaining unit members."
Many UC classes had been scheduled to come to a halt at 9 a.m. Wednesday for a two-day instructor walkout that would have gone into Thursday. The two sides had been negotiating for months over issues including pay and working conditions.
A ratification vote will take place later this week.
There are 10 colleges in the UC system, including UCLA and UC Irvine.