UC service workers strike over pay
More than 250 workers rally outside UCLA Medical Center in Westwood. The workers say they are paid 25% less than workers who hold similar jobs at other facilities.
Hundreds of service workers at the University of California's 10 campuses and five hospitals began a five-day strike Monday in a dispute over wages.
University officials reported "minimal impact" from the walkout by custodians, cooks, healthcare workers and other employees. Campus shuttles were idled at UC Berkeley and cafeteria hours were curtailed at UC Irvine, but patient care was not affected at any of the university's five medical centers, they said.
"No gaps," said Sheila Antrum, chief nursing officer at UC San Francisco Medical Center.
At noon, more than 250 workers, dressed in blue scrubs and striped uniform shirts, circled in front of the new travertine-clad Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Westwood, chanting "No Justice, No Peace," as passersby honked and hooted encouragement.
"We're the ones making UCLA beautiful, polished," said custodian Maria Ruano, 53, standing across from the $1-billion building, designed by I.M. Pei and his son. "I'm working for 19 years and making $11.61 an hour. That's ridiculous."
Tom Rosenthal, chief medical officer for UCLA hospitals, which includes a branch in Santa Monica, said that all emergency rooms remained open and that no surgeries had been canceled.
But he cautioned that the longer the strike goes on, the greater the threat to patient care.
"What makes this strike so dangerous is we don't know from day to day who might show up," Rosenthal said. The workers, members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, say they are paid 25% less than employees with comparable jobs at community colleges and private hospitals.
UC and the union have been negotiating a new contract since last year without success.
UC officials said they have offered patient-care employees 26% raises over the next five years. For service employees, a hike in the minimum hourly rate from $10.28 to $11.50 has been proposed.
UC representatives said the strike violated a temporary restraining order issued by a San Francisco judge, but the union said the walkout was legal because the university was notified in advance.
The contract dispute comes as the UC system faces severe funding shortages. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed a budget for next year that would leave the university $240 million short of covering its costs.
