UC strike: Postdoctoral scholars, researchers reach tentative deal but will honor pickets

In a significant breakthrough, University of California postdoctoral scholars and academic researchers have reached a tentative agreement for higher wages and cost-of-living increases but won’t return to work in solidarity with some 36,000 graduate student workers who remain on strike, the union announced Tuesday.

“We are proud to have reached agreements that address the soaring cost of living, and reflect the value of our contributions at UC,” Neal Sweeney, president of UAW Local 5810, said in a statement. “These agreements represent a new, best-in-class model that will improve quality of life — and the quality of research — for scientists across the US. It is now time for UC to make serious proposals to Academic Student Employees and Student Researchers and to reach fair agreements that recognize the contributions these workers make.”

The postdoctoral employees and academic researchers make up about 12,000 of the 48,000 union members who launched the nation’s largest ever strike of academic workers three weeks ago. The graduate student teaching assistants, tutors and researchers in two other bargaining units — UAW 2865 and SRU-UAW — remain on strike. These workers do much of the critical work of leading discussion sections, running labs, grading assignments and administering exams.

The breakthrough is not expected to significantly change the uncertainty at campuses systemwide over how to handle grading and final exams as fall terms draw to a close.

For postdoctoral scholars, the tentative agreement includes:

— A 20%-23% salary increase (up to $12,000) by October 2023 for most union members. The current lowest postdoctoral worker would receive a 57% increase over five years.
—Annual increases of 7.2% for postdoctoral workers on scale and 3% for those above scale for 2024-2027.
—An increase of four weeks to eight weeks of paid parental and family leave.
—Childcare subsidies that will start at $2,500 annually and increase to $2,800 annually — their first such subsidy.
—Longer appointments for more job security, greater protections against bullying and for workers with disabilities.
—Transportation benefits, including a commitment for free transit passes within three years and a 15% e-bike discount.

For academic researchers, the agreement includes an average 29% salary increase over the five-year contract. They will also receive eight weeks of paid family leave, longer appointments for better job security, enhanced transportation benefits and more protection against bullying and for workers with disabilities.