How CFA Members Can Support Teamsters Members on Strike November 14

Teamsters Local 2010 leaders have announced that they will go on a one-day unfair labor practice (ULP) strike on Tuesday November 14.

“For all that Teamsters members have done for us, we encourage our members to do the same,” said Charles Toombs, CFA President. “Our coalition has always fought hard together, and we would not be nearly as strong without their unwavering support at our rallies and picketing events. It is in our collective struggle that we can truly make a difference for the students and one another.”

We are entirely free to aid their strike efforts in any instance – including meal and rest breaks – that we are not performing our normal job duties and responsibilities. For example, you cannot skip a department meeting, cancel your classes, or call in sick to attend their strike. You may, however, go out and support their strike efforts when you do not have scheduled meetings, classes, or appointments. You can also schedule your Personal Holiday per Article 33.3.

Supporting their actions can come in many forms, including sharing information about their strike, walking the picket line and carrying signs with them, sharing images of their job actions on social media, signing available petitions and pledging support, honking as you pass them, bringing food for them, and fundraising for their cause.

We encourage faculty on the morning of the Teamsters’ strike to call and e-mail their campus administration to make sure the campus is open and campus facilities, such as plumbing, air conditioning, electricity, etc. are operational and safe for faculty, students, and staff.

The ULP strike comes shortly after 94 percent of their members voted to authorize a strike. Click here for more information on strike locations and how to aid in their strike efforts at 22 CSU campuses and the Chancellor’s Office.

Standing with his daughters by his side, Carlos Sanchez, Teamsters 2010 Bargaining Committee Member and Lead Locksmith at CSU San Diego, spoke earnestly in front of the Board of Trustees about his situation, saying, “Sometimes in life you have to stand up for what you believe in, and that’s what I’m teaching my daughters today. As a thirty-year service employee, I’m not even at the top of my pay. When are you going to look at the blue-collar worker and compensate them according to what they do for you? On Tuesday we will strike for the first time in my career. Living check by check, it’s getting old. I demand you bring your bargaining team back to the table with a fair offer.”

CFA members have always banded together with our fellow workers in Teamsters, a union which represents around 1,100 skilled trade workers in the CSU system, including mechanics, carpenters, painters, electricians, plumbers, blacksmiths, and engineers.

This is a pivotal moment in their labor organizing. We strongly support their fight and call on our members to show their support as well.

We recognize that their workers are being paid considerably less than similar workers in the University of California system. And in many instances, they have been in the CSU system for decades without any way to move upward from the bottom of their salary scale.

If you have questions about faculty rights, please be in touch with your chapter leaders.