AFSCME claim: UC’s proposals are inadequate.
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Facts:
- UC is offering wage increases and freezing healthcare costs to protect employee take-home pay.
- UC’s wage offer: 16% wage increase over 4 years for service staff; 20% wage increase over 4 years for patient care technical employees, on top of annual 2-5% increases already given in prior years.
- UC pay is market competitive and appropriate for the skills and duties that employees perform. UC pay is currently above market for a number of positions.
- UC has proposed no increase in healthcare costs in Kaiser and HealthNet and to continue excellent pension and retiree healthcare benefits that few employers nationwide can match.
- UC has proposed revised terms on layoffs and contracting out that offer AFSCME-represented workers greater job protection.
AFSCME claim: UC refuses to offer AFSCME anything comparable to what it has offered other unions.
Facts:
- UC is offering similar or larger percentage wage increases to AFSCME than CUE and UPTE agreed to.
- UC agreed to AFSCME’s demand for the same pension formula as CNA and UPTE.
- UC agreed to AFSCME’s demand for the same retiree healthcare rules as CNA and UPTE.
- UC offered to freeze healthcare costs for AFSCME members in Kaiser and HealthNet — a benefit not offered to any other union.
AFSCME claim: Unsafe staffing practices are endangering patients and putting lives at risk.
Facts:
- AFSCME demanded a state audit of UC medical centers. The state complied and last week issued an audit report that rejected all the union’s charges.
- The state audit found the level of patient care and satisfaction at UCSF and UCLA medical centers was among the highest in the nation.
- Year after year, UC medical centers are lauded for excellent patient care and listed among the top in the country by industry experts.
AFSCME claim: UC is tone-deaf to the union’s concerns.
Facts:
- UC has offered significant flexibility on issues AFSCME said are important to its members, including compensation and layoff protection.
- As recently as Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014, UC offered even higher annual wage increases.
- UC previously offered pension formulas with employee contributions as low as 5% versus the higher employee contributions AFSCME has insisted upon.
- UC has offered to freeze healthcare costs in Kaiser and HealthNet.
- AFSCME leaders have repeatedly rejected UC’s offers and refused to show the same flexibility.
UC's offers provide employees significant guaranteed wage increases, quality benefits and good working conditions. A strike creates more conflict and uncertainty.