Cal State University faculty members have called off their weeklong systemwide strike one day in and are expected to return to work today across all 23 CSU campuses after reaching a tentative agreement with the institution, potentially ending eight months of negotiations.
Some highlights of the new agreement, which extends to some 29,000 union members, include:
- 5% general salary increase for all faculty retroactive to July 1, 2023.
- 5% percent general salary increase for all faculty on July 1, 2024 (depending on whether the state reduces base funding to the CSU).
- Raising the salary floor for the lowest-paid faculty ($3,000 increase in the minimum pay for Ranges A and B retroactive to July 1, 2023; additional $3,000 increase in the minimum pay for Range A on July 1, 2024).
- Salary step increase of 2.65% for 2024-25.
- Expanding paid parental leave from six to 10 weeks.
- Increasing protection for faculty who have dealings with police by providing a union rep in those interactions.
- Improving access to gender-inclusive restrooms and lactation spaces, including ways to track accessibility issues.
- Providing support for lecturer engagement in service work.
- Extending the current contract for 2022 to 2024 one year to June 30, 2025.
The California Faculty Association did not win the immediate 12% raise they’ve been fighting for, but the new agreement still hits many of the points on pay increases and better working conditions they’ve demanded.
“The collective action of so many lecturers, professors, counselors, librarians, and coaches over these last eight months forced CSU management to take our demands seriously. This Tentative Agreement makes major gains for all faculty at the CSU,” CFA President Charles Toombs said in a statement.
Now that they’ve reached an agreement, CFA members can ratify the contract in the coming weeks.
The agreement marks an abrupt end to the CFA’s planned weeklong strike, which they vowed would shut down campuses and cancel classes across the state.
CSU has told students to look for messages from their instructors regarding returning to class, and the university will give more details in the next few days, according to a press release.
“With the agreement in place, I look forward to advancing our student-centered work – together – as the nation’s greatest driver of social mobility and the pipeline fueling California’s diverse and educated workforce,” CSU Chancellor Mildred Garcia said in a statement.