Posts tagged librarians
Tenured faculty at Michigan State reach deal to unionize
September 11, 2025 // A recognition agreement was signed by representatives from both MSU and the Union of Tenure System Faculty on Sept. 8, “following a neutral party verification confirming that a clear majority of eligible faculty submitted authorization cards in support of union representation,” union officials said in a release. The new union of nearly 2,000 members includes all faculty appointed under the rules of tenure and holding the rank of professor, associate professor, or assistant professor employed by Michigan State University. Librarians without management duties are included.
Editorial: Pampered state workers threaten to strike (California)
June 4, 2025 // On May 17, AFSCME Local 2620’s Executive Board unanimously voted to set up a strike fund. Their website promised: “This action sends a clear message: We are serious. We are organized. And we are ready.” But the unions should listen to another clear message: Californians are tired of being taxed to the max to support a bloated, inefficient state government that only delivers low-performing schools, potholed roads and massive budget deficits. If these state government workers don’t like their working conditions, they should quit and get real jobs in the private sector with the rest of us.
Salt Lake City librarians officially unionize, but likely referendum to determine next steps
May 5, 2025 // Ninety-two percent of Salt Lake City librarians voted to unionize, joining AFSCME Local 1004. A new state law, HB267, bans public sector collective bargaining agreements. A likely referendum on the bill will determine the future of public union negotiations in 2026.
CTU rejects fact-finder, moves closer to strike
February 11, 2025 // It supports CPS' proposed 4% to 5% annual raises, plus CTU's proposals to add 90 new librarians hired by 2029 and more family engagement coordinators, Chalkbeat reports. Yes but: It does not weigh in on CTU demands for revamping teacher evaluations and more teacher prep time through enrichment classes like art or music. Meanwhile: The Service Employees International Union's (SEIU) Illinois council this month declared itself under attack by the CTU under current CTU contract proposals, the Tribune reports.
California State Union Approves Tentative Deal, Despite Dissent
February 22, 2024 // . Some members publicly campaigned against the deal, expressing disappointment that the strike didn’t last longer. “We know that some members had strong concerns about the process and questions about the result,” Sharon Elise, the union’s associate vice president of racial and social justice, South region, said in the release. “We will only be successful if we’re working together to continue building a CSU that empowers students and provides work environments that support faculty and staff.”
CSU faculty union approves contract with university that would raise salaries
February 20, 2024 // “We believe that accepting this deal leaves our economic and social-justice issues inadequately addressed, lets CSU off the hook with no systemic change, and fails to protect our students’ right to an accessible, affordable, high-quality education,” the Vote Down website says. “I felt that we were only just getting started in our power,” said Robin Dodds, a professor at California State L.A. who is involved with a campaign on her campus to vote no on the agreement. “I would prefer to go back to the bargaining table and continue to do better for the union.”
Cal State faculty start strike at largest US public university system
January 22, 2024 // “I have no interest in a strike. We are ready and willing to come back to the bargaining table with the California Faculty Association,” she said. “But we must work within our financial realities.” In contract negotiations earlier this month, the university agreed to 5 percent raises, which the union deemed inadequate. The university reached a labor agreement with its Teamsters union local over the weekend, which also prepared to strike. The strike follows a similar graduate student walkout at the University of California system in December 2022, which resulted in significant wage increases after 40 days of striking.
California faculty at largest US university system launch strike for better pay
December 4, 2023 // The California State University chancellor's office says the pay increase the union is seeking would cost the system $380 million in new recurring spending. That would be $150 million more than increased funding for the system by the state for the 2023-24 year, the office said. Leora Freedman, the vice chancellor for human resources, said in a statement that the university system aims to pay its workers fairly and provide competitive benefits. “We recognize the need to increase compensation and are committed to doing so, but our financial commitments must be fiscally sustainable,” Freedman said.
L.A. schools would close if union workers go on massive three-day strike, Supt. Carvalho says
March 14, 2023 // United Teachers Los Angeles, which also is in contract talks, has advised its members that they should walk out in solidarity with Local 99 to ratchet up pressure on the district. Local 99 has described the strike as an unfair labor practice charge walkout in protest of alleged illegal actions by L.A. Unified during the negotiations process. Such strikes typically last for a fixed duration and can be staged without going through all the steps of bargaining that typically precede an open-ended strike, according to the unions. The union bargaining platform is extensive, covering a range of workplace and social-justice issues, including a commitment to extra resources for Black students and affordable housing for low-income families.
Why teachers in Ohio’s largest school district voted to go on strike
August 24, 2022 // The showdown is the latest in years of tensions across the nation between teachers who argue they are underpaid and underappreciated, particularly after navigating the coronavirus pandemic, and school systems that say they are strapped for cash. In Columbus, teachers say they want guarantees of smaller class sizes, full-time art, music and physical education teachers in elementary schools and a cap on the number of class periods throughout the school day.