top
Santa Cruz IMC
Santa Cruz IMC
Indybay
Indybay
Indybay
Regions
Indybay Regions North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area California United States International Americas Haiti Iraq Palestine Afghanistan
Topics
Newswire
Features
From the Open-Publishing Calendar
From the Open-Publishing Newswire
Indybay Feature

UCSC Workers Offer New Year Resolutions To Shape Up UC

by ~Bradley (bradley [at] riseup.net)
Members of AFSCME (American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees) Local 3299 (custodians, food service workers, gardeners, maintenance workers, shuttle drivers and medical center workers) as well as students, teachers, and community allies, rallied at UC Santa Cruz on January 31st, the same day AFSCME's contract with the University of California (UC) expired. The demonstration coincided with AFSCME Local 3299's statewide delegations to all five UC medical center CEOs and all ten campus Chancellors to present a list of seven new year resolutions that the UC System must adopt to ensure quality patient care and student services.

The demonstration, began with a rally in the Baytree Plaza at UC Santa Cruz and was followed by a march to Kerr Hall, where the chancellor's office is located, to demand justice for UC's lowest wage workers. AFSCME Local 3299 and their allies are calling on Chancellor Blumenthal to take leadership within the UC to support UCSC workers and strengthen the broader Santa Cruz community by granting AFSCME members a fair contract with market rate standards and benefits protections. AFSCME organizers assert that, "outrageous executive compensation continues to be a top priority at UC while frontline workers struggle to make ends meet.
imperious_1-31-08.jpg
FOR MORE PHOTOS AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT:

Rally in UCSC's Baytree Plaza Demands Justice for UC's Lowest Wage Workers
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/02/02/18476622.php
§Taking Back UC!
by ~Bradley
taking-back_1-31-08.jpg
§Security
by ~Bradley
security_1-31-08.jpg
§Rosario Cortes, Custodian
by ~Bradley
rosario_1-31-08.jpg
§Kerr Hall
by ~Bradley
kerr-hall_1-31-08.jpg
§Tony Madrigal, Santa Cruz City Councilperson
by ~Bradley
tony_1-31-08.jpg
§Amy Newell, UPTE Organizer
by ~Bradley
amy_1-31-08.jpg
University Professional & Technical Employees (UPTE) was founded in 1990 to organize workers at the University of California.
http://www.upte.org
§Jenny Chan, from Hong Kong
by ~Bradley
jenny_1-31-08.jpg
Jenny Chan is chief coordinator of Students and Scholars against Corporate Misbehavior (SACOM) in Hong Kong and a steering committee member of GoodElectronics. She received her M.Phil. in Sociology at the University of Hong Kong in May 2006.
§Labor Solidarity
by ~Bradley
labor-solidarity_1-31-08.jpg
§Jesper Nielsen
by ~Bradley
jesper_1-31-08.jpg
Jesper Nielsen is international adviser for the United Federation of Danish Workers, which has 360,000 affiliates. He works with trade union development cooperation mainly in Central America and Africa, and with international solidarity campaigns. He was previously based in Nicaragua working with projects in Latin America.
§Dana Frank, UCSC History Professor
by ~Bradley
dana_1-31-08.jpg
§Robert Chacanaca, MBCLC President and AFT Member
by ~Bradley
robert_1-31-08.jpg
The Monterey Bay Central Labor Council is the "union of all the unions", representing 60 AFL-CIO and Change to Win labor unions on California's central coast.
http://www.montereybaylabor.org

The American Federation of Teachers was founded in 1916 to represent the economic, social and professional interests of classroom teachers. It is an affiliated international union of the AFL-CIO.
http://www.aft.org
§Yolanda Lopez, Custodian
by ~Bradley
yolanda_1-31-08.jpg
§Students
by ~Bradley
students_1-31-08.jpg
§New Year Resolutions
by ~Bradley
resolutions_1-31-08.jpg
Maria Padilla presents 7 new year resolutions to help UC become the good employer and neighbor Californians want.

“Failing California’s Communities: How the University of California’s Low Wages Affect Surrounding Cities and Neighborhoods”
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/02/02/18476618.php
§Maria Padilla, Principle Food Service Worker
by ~Bradley
maria_1-31-08.jpg
§More Photos and Background Information
by ~Bradley
FOR MORE PHOTOS AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT:

Rally in UCSC's Baytree Plaza Demands Justice for UC's Lowest Wage Workers
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/02/02/18476622.php
Add Your Comments

Comments (Hide Comments)
by A. Reader
I'm all for UC paying the workers more money, but I just gotta make an observation; Robert Chanacaca's hands haven't seen any 'labor' in a long time. No callouses, scars, burns, cuts or dirt under the nails. Just something I noticed, and felt I should point out...
by leni
um, looking at that photo, I would disagree. He looks like he has hands on the relatively used and stubby side, even if he had washed them recently. By the way, lots of blue collar people who do manual jobs are using equipment, and aren't necessarily picking lettuce or digging with a shovel. Janitors, prep cooks, truck drivers etc. these days aren't going to have calloused hands. Even trash collectors aren't lifting cans themselves like they used to in the 1980s.
by Dragon Lover
I wold like to start out saying I agree everyone should be paid a fair salary for a fair days work. Now here comes the part I will get hated for. Define fair. The suggested salaries for the so called front line workers suggested by the unions are rapidly approaching those of people who have worked hard to get an education, learn a skill, and enter the work force in a technical field. I know UC technical employees who are barely making $32,000 a year or $15/hr. Why is it fair to raise the pay of employees who do work hard but basically are in a job that required nothing more than some on the job training. There was a time the reason these jobs paid so poorly is that they were entry level jobs that people took while in school or while looking for a job that better suited their technical and educational skills. Do I think employees of the UC system are under paid? Yes, all employees! Employees with many years experience and advanced tachincal education are paid almost 25% less than their non UC counterparts.
We are 100% volunteer and depend on your participation to sustain our efforts!

Donate

$110.00 donated
in the past month

Get Involved

If you'd like to help with maintaining or developing the website, contact us.

Publish

Publish your stories and upcoming events on Indybay.

IMC Network