Labor
Rally and Walkout at UC Santa Cruz to Defend the Future of Public Education
Sep 24th
On September 24th, students, faculty, staff and alumni at University of California (UC) schools participated in a day of coordinated walkouts and rallies in defense of the future of public education. Hundreds rallied at the base of the UC Santa Cruz campus to protest the privatization of the UC system, which includes student fee hikes, faculty and staff furloughs and layoffs, executive pay increases, and cuts to courses, programs and services. The University Professional and Technical Employees (UPTE) held a daylong strike at all UC schools, with pickets at the main and west entrances of UCSC from 6am–6pm.
Rallies took place at the base of UCSC, amplified courtesy of People Power!’s human-powered bicycle generator, at 12pm and 3:30pm. After the 3:30pm rally, students marched and occupied the intersection by the Bay Tree Plaza. From there, it was announced that a building occupation was underway, and people moved to the Bay Tree Plaza to support an ongoing inhabitation of the Graduate Student Commons. Read More and View Photos
Labor Organizing and Independent Media are Not Crimes
Aug 31st
On August 31st, members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) were accompanying their fellow worker, Erik Forman, to his first day back on the job at Starbucks in the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. Erik was recently fired for labor organizing, although that was not the official explanation given by Starbucks.
Police from Plymouth, a town outside of Bloomington, prevented Erik’s supporters from getting off the light-rail and entering the mall. Erik was eventually allowed into the mall so he could get to work, although he was late as a result of all the police harassment and misinformation.
My friend David and I caught up with the group of people that were turned away from the mall. David recorded a video interview with Jake Bell about the day’s events and the future plans of the Twin Cities branch of the IWW. A Metro Transit Police officer drove past us in an SUV. The interview was finished and as we were walking away, the police officer turned around and drove to the spot where the interview was conducted. At that point the officer appeared to be looking for an unattended item that may have been left behind. No such items were found, but the police officer decided to follow us for about two miles.
Neither labor organizing nor independent media are against the law, but both activities are being repressed in the Twin Cities, and elsewhere. Read More and View Photos
Neighbors and Labor Rally Against La Behemoth; Change to Zoning Law
Aug 21st
On August 21st, workers and Santa Cruz community members rallied in front of La Bahia protesting a variety of issues, including the ratio of unionized labor during the reconstruction and then operation of the new hotel. Neighbors, particularly those that live on First Street, are upset that the proposed project exceeds the current legal height limit and because the site is not zoned for such a large building. Other people want to preserve, rather than destroy, the historic landmark built in the 1920s.
A press release by the Build a Better La Bahia Coalition, a group of neighbors, construction and service workers, and community representatives interested in the successful development of a hotel at the site of La Bahia, states that they want the new hotel to be “both economically and environmentally successful.” However, concern for the environment, at least from the labor unions, appears to be token at best. In 1999, Mary Spicuzza wrote an in-depth article in Metro Santa Cruz about the plans for La Bahia. In the article, Spicuzza notes, “Union advocates concede that the their primary concern isn’t preserving landmarks or keeping neighbors happy, it’s organizing workers.”
On the other hand, Ross Gibson and the City of Santa Cruz Historic Preservation Commission seem to be the most influential in regards to architectural preservation and environmental concerns, as well as the relocation of residents. Read More and View Photos
AFSCME on Strike During New Student Orientations at UCSC
Jul 17th
Incoming UC Santa Cruz students and their families got an official orientation to college on July 17th while campus service workers were striking for the fourth day in a row. Since 2004, the Student and Worker Coalition for Justice (SWCJ) at UC Santa Cruz has been working to spread awareness and solidarity with the hardest-working and lowest-paid employees at the University of California (UC). In the last year alone, the demand to end poverty wages at the UC has been carried far and wide, including meetings of the UC Regents, dorms, dinning halls and classrooms, an alumni fundraiser luncheon, a $1,000 a plate dinner with Chancellor George Bluementhal, the Chancellor’s inauguration, Highway 1, as well as to representatives in Sacramento. Service workers are vital to the UC, however AFSCME, the union representing the workers, reports that they are nowhere near reaching a fair settlement with the UC. Read More and View Photos
Day One of AFSCME’s Five Day Strike at UCSC
Jul 14th
July 14th kicked off AFSCME’s five day strike at the University of California’s ten campuses and five medical centers. At UC Santa Cruz, AFSCME workers, students, workers from supporting unions, and other community members are picketing at the intersection of Bay and High at the base of campus. County buses are respecting the picket line by dropping people off at the base of campus. Some classes were held at the base of the campus and other spaces in Santa Cruz. Scabs have been hired by the UC, but AFSCME workers say as the week continues, people will start to notice declines in the quality of service and cleanliness in buildings, bathrooms, dinning halls and throughout campus. Read More and View Photos
