California State Faculty Union Approves New Contract With CSU

Members of the California Faculty Association (CFA) union voted on and approved of the tentative agreement with California State University (CSU) that had been struck last month, ending a saga that has been going on in the University system since early last year.

Early in 2023, CSU workers began talks of a strike following years of complaining about financial hardships. Over the summer, the faculty union began negotiating a new contract with CSU, hoping to avoid yet another strike in the state. CSU faculty, who are currently paid on average $99,000 for full-time work,$67,000 for part-time work, and just above $50,000 for lecturers, asked for a 12% across-the-board raise. CSU countered with a 5% raise. By August, both sides stopped talking because of a lack of progress, inviting in an independent arbiter.

Demands soon became solidified. In addition to the 12% raise, the CFA demanded an additional parental leave increase from six weeks to a full semester, more gender-inclusive bathrooms, pay equity, more manageable work loads, more mental health counselors, and more lactating facilities for faculty with babies. Despite CSU still showing willingness to talk with the union over the issues, the CFA, with members at all 23 CSU campuses across the state, voted on authorizing a strike in late October.

In December, the first strikes occurred, with 4 separate one-day strikes happening at various CSU campuses. Following those, CSU raised their offer, offering 15% over 3 years instead of the 12% over 1 year that the CFA stubbornly refused to budge from. However, the CFA rejected this as well. With talks breaking down once more, a more severe 5 day strike encompassing all campuses in the system was announced for this week. While a deal was made with 1,100 Teamsters campus workers during the weekend to avoid a separate strike, no such deal was made with the CFA. On Monday, the CFA did as promised, with tens of thousands of employees walking off at the 23 CSU campuses. However, rather than strike the full five days, the union finally caved one day in, leading to a tentative agreement between both sides, ending the strike on January 22nd.

Under the new deal, most of the terms were what CSU had wanted or originally offered in the first place with the 12% raise figure, seen as a line in the sand to most union leaders being significantly diminished. The deal will give a 5% raise to all faculty retroactive to July of 2023, with another 5% raise coming in July of 2024. Yearly step increases and minimum pay rises were also added in as sweeteners to get the CFA to agree to a new contract that didn’t include the 12% raise. The contract, which will remain into effect until the end of 2025, will also see additional weeks of maternity leave, more gender-inclusive bathrooms, more lactating facilities, and the inclusion of a union representative in instances when faculty and police have an interaction.

Many observors noted that, unlike other tentative union deals being agreed to and voted on by a vast majority of members, the CFA-CSU deal left many bitter. Many in the CFA felt like the union closed too early on the deal, and that a longer strike could have gotten them everything they wanted. The dissent was seen in Monday’s ratification vote where only 76% of voting members approved of the deal, showing a split union. Despite this, CFA president Charles Toombs tried to put a positive spin on the announcement on Monday.

“After eight months of reopener bargaining and numerous job actions, including two sets of strikes, 76% of voting CFA members approved our Tentative Agreement (TA), according to results certified by the vote’s third-party administrator,” said Toombs on Monday. “We thank members for their solidarity, debate, and courage to press CSU management for better faculty working and student learning conditions, especially everyone who worked tirelessly organizing the successful strikes and joining the picket lines. We look forward to working together to continue our advocacy for an equitable CSU. We have special gratitude to our students and sibling union members, as well as elected leaders and public education allies who joined our cause and showed up in favor of investing in our CSU.”

After 8 months of reopener bargaining & numerous job actions including 2 sets of strikes, 76% of voting CFA members approved our TA. We thank members for their solidarity, debate, & courage to press CSU management for better faculty working and student learning conditions. pic.twitter.com/ZuLr65VCy7

— California Faculty Association (@CFA_United) February 19, 2024

Meanwhile, the CSU Office of the Chancellor said on Monday in a brief statement, “CSU is pleased with the results of the CFA ratification vote. This agreement provides for a 10 percent general salary increase to all faculty by July, with a raise in salary minimums for the lowest-paid faculty that will result in increases—some as high as 21 percent—for many of them. It also addresses issues that the CFA identified as extremely important to its members, such as increased paid family leave from 6 to 10 weeks and a process for making gender-inclusive restrooms and lactation spaces more easily accessible. We look forward to the CSU Board of Trustees Committee on Collective Bargaining ratification of the agreement in March and to continue working in partnership with the CFA and its members to carry out our mission in service to our students and the university.”

Experts told the Globe on Monday that the CFA is simply trying to save face at this point.

“Like I said last month, the union lost and they know it,” said John Waithe, a Chicago-based higher education researcher, to the Globe on Monday. “CSU just doesn’t have the money for huge raises right now, and they were steadfast and won out. And we saw this situation continue on today. Only 76% of the CFA agreed. With most union contracts needing ratification, they always want to appear united, so they’re almost always high 80’s, or in the 90’s in terms of percentage. The CFA fractured. And of that 76% who voted, just from those members talking, it sounds like many voted for it just so it could be done with, rather than actually approving of it.

“The Board will give final approval in all likelihood. But for the union, there is going to have to be time of significant healing fast, because another contract is up on the horizon and the union is pretty divided.”

The CSU Board of Trustees is to meet next month for final approval of the agreement.