In an interview with AP News, John de los Angeles, the spokesman for AFSCME, said, they want University of California to tackle the widening inequality. They want it to stop outsourcing workers.
De los Angeles said, “They are actively seeking to hire contract workers in favor of directly employed workers simply because they are cheaper and that is driving inequality.”
University of California calls labor union’s demand “unreasonable”
On the other hand, University of California spokeswoman Claire Doan said the union is demanding almost 20% wage increase for service workers over three years. She pointed out their salaries are already at or above market rates.
For more than a year, AFSCME 3299 has been negotiating its demands with the University of California.
The university offered an annual increase of 3% over four years and an an annual cap of $25 for any monthly premium increase. Additionally, its proposal to raise the retirement age to 65 to qualify for full benefits will apply only to new employees who opted a pension instead of a 401 (k) plan.
