Factfinding Begins as Campus Activism Increases

CFA members and CSU management met Monday for the first factfinding session in our re-opener bargaining campaign. The meeting covered Article 23 (Leaves of Absence with Pay) and some of our proposals for Article 37 (Health and Safety). Our position on Article 23 is that 30 days of leave is not enough for new parents. Member-led work on the parental support workgroup informed the presentation. Management’s position on Article 37 is that existing gender-inclusive restrooms and lactation spaces are sufficient.

Of note, CSU management hired outside counsel to present their case to the factfinding panel despite significant staffing in both the office of general counsel and in their labor relations teams.

Later sessions will be dedicated to the remaining re-opener articles, Article 20 (Workload), Article 31 (Salary), and Article 32 (Benefits). 

As factfinding continues, we are nearing the end of the statutory process in our re-opener contract campaign, and we approach the possibility of taking job actions, including a strike. Should the statutory process fail to produce a fair contract for our faculty, we must be ready to take collective action.

In the next several weeks, CFA members will be asked to empower the CFA Board of Directors with the authority to call a strike should it become necessary.

CSU management has continuously refused to take seriously the profound negative impacts on students and faculty that persist because of their entrenchment in the status quo: an inadequate Title IX process, paltry paid parental leave, pay that does not keep ahead of inflation, continued workload creep, ongoing lack of investment in mental health counseling, and the pervasive environment of racism and anti-Blackness. Our re-opener bargaining proposals are an attempt to correct these wrongs and organize for a better CSU.

A “Yes” vote will send a powerful signal to management that we are prepared to withhold our labor to get the contract we deserve. This isn’t to say that a strike is inevitable, though it is a call to strike if we cannot reach a resolution.

Campuses are also escalating their support for our transformative bargaining proposals.

The labor coalition at CSU Los Angeles held an informational practice picket as part of their preparation to be strike ready for their respective contract bargaining, and to be in unity with CSU students.

At an all-lecturer bargaining town hall on September 28, CFA members expressed their determination to fight for a better contract and organize on campus. The bargaining proposal to raise the lecturer salary floor was a central topic of conversation. Faculty recognize the need to work together as management tactics escalate.

There will be two statewide Strike Ready School workshops on October 12 and 19 that will provide a framework for union activism. Each session will cover different aspects of organizing.

The October 12 (today!) Strike Ready School workshop, titled “How We Win,” will cover current contract demands, CSU’s manufactured austerity messaging, and how we can push back and become strike ready.

The October 19 workshop, titled “Organizing 101,” aims to train CFA members on having meaningful conversations with their colleagues about the campaign.

To register for one or both of these workshops, click this link.

At San Francisco State University, CFA members are mobilizing in response to proposed cuts to mostly lecturer faculty.

We continue to demand an increase to the minimum salary for our lowest-paid faculty, a 12-percent across-the-board raise to keep pace with rising costs of living, a full semester of paid parental leave for new parents, reasonable workload/course caps, a proper counselor-to-student ratio, safe and accessible lactation spaces, safe and accessible gender-inclusive restrooms and changing rooms, and safety provisions for faculty interacting with university police on campuses. 

Stay up-to-date at www.CFAbargaining.org.