Union for state university faculty sets strike date: October 19th
(Harrisburg) — A strike date has been set by the union for faculty at Pennsylvania’s 14 state-owned universities, and this weekend, union members are training for a walk-out.
Faculty members will strike October 19th if a contract agreement is not reached between the State System of Higher Education and the union known as APSCUF.
Negotiations between the union and the State System of Higher Education have been on-going for over a year.
Union President Kenneth Mash says they will continue negotiations, and he hopes strike preparations will turn out to be unnecessary.
“We have always said that we believe a strike is the last resort. But if the State System believes that it can just push its faculty around, and we won’t react, then they are nothing more than bullies, and we won’t accept that,” says Mash.
He adds: “We have always said that our first priority is to get a contract, but we’re not going to be foolish and if we have to head down this path we’ll be prepared.”
APSCUF is also filing an unfair labor practice charge with the state labor board, claiming the state system has failed to meet its responsibility in negotiations.
The State System offered the union a 12 percent increase in salary, though APSCUF says there are still major issues over healthcare costs and the use of new graduate students to teach classes.
Union faculty at Pennsylvania’s 14 state universities will go on strike October 19th if a contract agreement isn’t reached.
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