This week, UC submitted a robust economic proposal to the United Auto Workers union as part of a multi-year contract to ensure fair pay for Academic Student Employees/ASEs (Teaching Assistants/Associates/Fellows, Readers, and Tutors). Highlights of the proposal are:
Fair pay:
- All salaried bargaining unit members will receive a salary scale increase of 5% in year one of the contract, with 3% increases in each subsequent year.
- All hourly bargaining unit members will receive an hourly wage increase of $1.00 per hour in year one of the contract, with a $0.75 hourly rate increase each subsequent year.
Quality benefits and family support:
- UC is offering to increase the childcare reimbursement by $450 for the entire academic year ($150 increase per quarter and $225 increase per semester) with an additional $150 increase for a qualifying summer session appointment.
- As part of the economic package, paid pregnancy disability leave will increase to seven weeks, and paid personal medical leave/baby bonding/care for family members will increase from four to five weeks.
- We have doubled the amount of campus fee remission covered for qualified ASE appointments, increased to $200 per quarter and $300 per semester.
As a reminder, our overarching goal is to achieve a multi-year agreement that reflects the significant contributions ASEs make to undergraduate education at UC. Beyond fair pay, other priorities include:
- Supportive, respectful working conditions: Ensuring a safe, respectful, and supportive work environment for all employees is a top priority for UC.
- Good-faith, efficient negotiations: Negotiations are most successful when both sides come to the table with an open mind, a genuine willingness to listen and be flexible, and a good-faith commitment to productive, respectful negotiations to reach an agreement before the current contract expires.
Thank you for your many contributions to our instructional mission and the UC community.