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AFSCME members strike at UCLA

By Michelle Ouaknine and Heather Rabkin

April 14, 2005 9:00 p.m.

A majority of the 2,000 UCLA members of the American Federation
of State, County and Municipal Employees union went on strike on
Thursday.

AFSCME members work in residential dining and housing services,
and the Associated Students of UCLA campus restaurants.

At the UCLA Medical Center, AFSCME members work as security
guards, custodians and cafeteria staff.

AFSCME members decided to strike “to protest UC’s
refusal to bargain in good faith,” according to an AFSCME
press release.

“This was a success,” said Luz Roman, an assistant
cook who said she has worked at UCLA catering for eight years.

“People are tired, they can’t take it, they need
changes. If this doesn’t work, we will go bigger until (the
University of California) understands our needs,” Roman
said.

The UC and AFSCME have been in contract negotiations over the
past nine months, and are still in the bargaining process.

“We very much regret and are sensitive to the fact that
our service employees have not been able to receive pay increases
because of the state budget crisis,” said Noel Van Nyhuis, a
spokesman for the UC Office of the President.

The UC cannot currently guarantee wage increases in the new
contract, Van Nyhuis said.

Negotiations between the UC and AFSCME are on hold until a
neutral fact-finder sends recommendations to both sides, at which
point both sides must agree to those suggestions before a contract
is signed.

Despite the strike, some students chose to eat at the dining
halls.

Students that chose to eat in the dining halls ate on disposable
dishes and used disposable silverware.

At 12:30 p.m., the middle of what should be the lunch-time rush
at the Covel dining hall, all but around a dozen tables were empty
and there was more food prepared than there were students.

At 6 p.m. less than 20 students were eating at each of the open
dining halls: Covel, De Neve and Rieber.

UCLA made preparations to ensure that the strike did not affect
normal campus activity.

University police Capt. John Adams said additional police were
deployed to campus to ensure the strike and rally were
peaceful.

Workers were also hired from a temporary employment agency to
ensure that students were able to eat in the dining hall and at
ASUCLA eateries.

Hedrick Dining Hall, Puzzles, Crossroads and My Pizza were
closed, according to a UCLA Dining flier.

“It’s not as much variety,” said Anna
Nierenberg, a first-year biology student who chose to eat in Covel
dining hall for dinner.

“I don’t know enough about the strike, I feel like I
don’t have any information from the UC,” Nierenberg
said.

“I’m eating my normal dinner.”

Many other students did not eat in the dining halls on
Thursday.

Allison Ho, a first-year math and applied science student, said
she chose to not eat in the dorms on Thursday because she was
afraid the workers would get mad at her for using their
services.

Other students decided they would not eat in the dining halls
once they first heard there would be a strike.

“To be frank, this is only a day of food, and this could
mean a year’s worth of salary,” said Irene Dominguez, a
third-year psychology student.

“Why not help someone?”

Workers noted that a significant amount of students chose not to
eat in the dining halls.

“About 200 students came to De Neve for breakfast instead
of the usual 800,” said Tasha Hunter, who said she has worked
at UCLA for six years, and chose to strike Thursday.

Many workers expressed how integral students were to the strike
on Thursday.

“We all love what we’re doing here. We’re here
working for them. We’re dedicated,” said Debbie
Carreon, a Dining Services worker of nine years.

“Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

Some professors at UCLA also supported the strike.

Sharon Traweek, a history professor at UCLA, said that an e-mail
was sent out from the UC telling professors to hold class unless
the chair of the department provides written permission to not hold
class.

Traweek said the chair of the history department sent out a
“blanket e-mail” giving permission to the history
professors to cancel class at their discretion.

Tom O’Brien, who is a foreman working on the construction
of Rieber, said that he supported the strike.

“I hope they get what they want,” O’Brien
said. “We believe in what they are doing. All the unions
should be striking.”

Construction workers are not part of AFSCME.

There are no additional strikes planned by AFSCME, but workers
have said they are willing to if the bargaining process does not
end soon.

“We don’t make enough money to be able to afford a
longer strike, but we are willing to do it,” said Bernarda
Marcial, who said she has worked at UCLA for seven years.

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Michelle Ouaknine
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