Faculty Rights Tip: Your Rights While on Strike

From December 4 to 8, we intend on holding a series of one-day strikes! However, the bargaining process is designed to bring the two parties together. If CSU management addresses our demands around salary, workload, parental leave, and health and safety on campus, there’s a chance we could still come to an agreement. However, all signs point to us being on strike next week with possible follow-up strikes in Spring 2024 if needed.

Will consecutive, one-day rolling strikes be successful?

There are several types of strike strategies that workers have used to secure fair and equitable contracts. We have recently witnessed long, indeterminate strikes led by the Writers Guild of America (WGA) for five months and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) for four months that ultimately secured major gains for entertainment workers. Also, the United Auto Workers (UAW) recently concluded a successful 45-day rolling strike that pushed the Big Three automakers to make substantial concessions. The determination and willingness of these workers to remain on strike for months to shift the balance of power in the workplace is inspirational!

However, in the realm of public sector education workers, recent successful strikes have been much shorter and more focused. For example, the five-day AAUP-AFT strike at Rutgers in January, the four-day UIC United Faculty strike at the University of Illinois at Chicago in January, and the three-day SEIU 99/UTLA strike in March each won considerable improvements in compensation, workload, and working conditions for the striking educators. Moreover, in 2011, CFA members held a one-day strike at two campuses that forced management to meet our various demands. The CFA Board of Directors’ current call for four consecutive one-day rolling strikes is merely the “opening act” of an escalating strike wave that will flow into spring 2024 if management continues to reject our just proposals for a fair contract.

Is going on strike a legally protected activity?

YES, provided that three conditions are met: (1) Bargaining has been completed; (2) CFA has called a strike and given notice of the strike; and, (3) Strikers withhold all of their labor.

CFA makes sure the first two conditions are met. However, it is our responsibility as faculty members to make sure we are abstaining from ALL labor on striking campuses. If you do some work that day, like responding to emails over your morning coffee, but you then cancel class to be at the picket line, you are not protected.

If you are an instructional faculty member, this means:

• do not check campus email,
• do not hold classes, either online or on campus,
• do not work in your lab, office, or at home on your university laptop,
• do not meet with students (unless you invite them to the picket line),
• do not meet with colleagues on or off campus to do committee work or research,
• and do not cross the picket line, JOIN the picket line!
  

If you are a counseling faculty member, this means:

• do not check campus email,
• do not hold appointments with students or colleagues, either online or on campus,
• do not work on your university laptop,
• do cancel any and all appointments you have scheduled
• do not meet with students (unless you invite them to the picket line),
• do not meet with colleagues on or off campus to do committee work or research,
• and do not cross the picket line, JOIN the picket line!

If you are a library faculty member, this means:

• do not check campus email,
• do not hold classes, either online or on campus,
• do not work in the library or at home on your university laptop,
• do not meet with students (unless you invite them to the picket line),
• do not meet with colleagues on or off campus to do committee work or research,
• and do not cross the picket line, JOIN the picket line!

If you are a coaching faculty member, this means:

• do not check campus email,
• do not hold practices or meetings with athletes, either online or on campus,
• do not work in your office, court, or field – or at home on your university laptop,
• do not meet with student-athletes (unless you invite them to the picket line),
• do not meet with colleagues on or off campus to do any form of coaching work,
• and do not cross the picket line, JOIN the picket line!

I do not have US citizenship. Do ALL faculty have the right to strike?

YES! ALL faculty members have the right to strike at the designated striking campuses and are protected against retaliation for engaging in legal strike activities, and this includes international and undocumented faculty.

Will I get paid while on strike?

Probably not. Faculty do not get paid while on strike, which is why it is always the weapon of last resort. However, in our most recent one-day strike (2011), managers could not figure out how to dock pay, and for whom. If they can figure it out, they can dock our pay for one day.

Will I retain my health care benefits while on strike?

YES! Current state law prohibits the employer from discontinuing employer contributions for health care or other medical coverage for employees who are on a legal strike.

I am a lecturer. Can I be retaliated against for striking? I am worried about not being assigned classes in future semesters.

NO, you cannot be retaliated against for striking. As long as you completely withhold your labor, it is a legally protected activity. Chairs are not managers – they are faculty, too, and the vast majority are union members who will be on the picket lines with you!

I am a department chair. How can I support my colleagues? Am I allowed to send emails to them about the strike?

As a chair, your voice is influential. You can make your plans clear – if you plan to join the picket line, let your colleagues know, and invite them to join you. Encourage them to communicate with students ahead of time, and not during strike days. Support them in feeling confident to be on strike and express your support for their right to strike openly.

What do I tell my students?

Encourage students to participate in actions – they have historically supported us. You may use class time to give students information such as changes to the class schedule. And, you may discuss issues relevant to strike so long as they are relevant to subject matter of course (you can take a broad and expansive approach).

Can I visit a picket line if my campus is not on strike?

YES! You can and should join our colleagues at a striking campus. If you are not teaching on that day or can rearrange your work commitments, you can join the picket line. If you have work obligations on that day, you can request a personal holiday with your department coordinator and chair or supervisor. It does have to be approved, so you do need to put in your request now. Faculty have one personal day per year, and you can choose to take this personal day or if you have used it already, take a vacation day to join colleagues at one of these campuses.

Register to join the San Francisco and/or Sacramento State picket lines here. Register to join the Cal Poly Pomona and/or CSU Los Angeles picket lines here.

I am still feeling afraid about striking and the possibility of retaliation. Help!

You can always contact the Faculty Rights team or your local campus leaders.

See you on the picket line next week!

Want to learn more? Become active with your local CFA chapter Faculty Rights team. Find your representative here.

• Browse the faculty contract here.
• See an archive of Faculty Rights Tips.
• If you have questions about a faculty rights tip or would like to suggest a tip, please write us with the subject line “Faculty Rights Tip.”