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Union Rejects UC's Offer for Wage Increases for Patient Care Employees in Exchange for Contract Extension
University of California officials announced today (Feb. 27) that the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees rejected a UC proposal that would have provided approximately $16 million to UC patient care employees in annualized wages and related costs and would have raised the average systemwide pay rate for these employees to $20.75 an hour.
To date, AFSCME has rejected numerous UC contract extension proposals for patient care technical and service employees amounting to more than $18 million in annualized wages and related costs.
The university's proposal was intended as a short-term solution to provide well-deserved wage increases to patient care technical employees while allowing the parties to continue to work toward their shared goal of a new contract. The proposal, which would have extended the contract through Sept. 30, 2008, left health and welfare benefits, retirement benefits, and current parking rates untouched, while offering the following wage increases:
- Range adjustments: Increases to the minimum and maximum range for selected job titles.
- Individual increases: Increases of 3.5 percent to 15 percent within range for all individual job titles.
- Additional individual equity increases: Increases to individual salaries to address equity issues.
- Shift differential pay: Location-specific increases to hourly rates for evening and night shifts. Additional individual equity increases: Increases to individual salaries to address equity issues.
- Signing bonus: $500 for patient care technical employees with appointments of 50 percent or greater; $250 for those with appointments less than 50 percent.
At a mediation session on Tuesday (Feb. 26), the third-party mediator indicated that he would certify the negotiations to fact-finding today. At the close of mediation, UC presented the union with its proposal for a contract extension.
In the fact-finding process, UC and AFSCME will present their respective positions on the unresolved issues to a three-member fact-finding panel. The panel will then issue recommendations for resolving the differences between the parties. At the conclusion of fact-finding, if UC and AFSCME cannot reach agreement using the fact-finder's recommendations, the recommendations become available to the public.