Syllabus statement regarding a potential strike.

The administration has called for mediation–a state mandated part of bargaining once negotiations have broken down. They have reiterated their intent to pay faculty lower wages in real dollars. While your bargaining team will engage with the mediator and the administration’s team in good faith, evaluating all proposals carefully, we have heard unequivocally that faculty will not stand for wage cuts—not while tuition, state appropriations, and executive administrator salaries are growing faster than inflation. If there is no movement from administration, we may be forced to strike in order to secure the economic and professional conditions faculty need to flourish.

Of course, no strike will take place without a vote of the membership, and there are several state-mandated steps to go through before we are at that point. You can read our FAQ and see all of our bargaining updates in order to understand the process moving forward, and how we got here.

Regardless, we need to prepare for the possibility of a strike. This includes talking to our students and student workers about the potential impact to them. You may use time before or after class (whether in the classroom or not) or any other time you would normally interact with students to explain the situation, and how it may affect them. If students have questions about your potential involvement in a strike or other labor action, you may—but are not required to—answer them. The major proscription is asking student workers if they intend to strike or participate in a labor action (the UO Student Workers are also in mediation and may be led to a strike themselves).

We are including a syllabus statement and talking points about the possibility of a strike for you to use or adapt. If you have any questions or concerns, whether general or about specific circumstances, please reach out to [email protected]. We will be communicating regularly with the status of mediation and what you can do to help secure a fair contract for faculty.

As we head into the holiday break, United Academics would like to wish everyone a well-deserved time of rest and relaxation. This is a moment to recharge and, hopefully, take a step back from the hustle and bustle. We must also remember that, because of the lack of forward movement from the Scholz administration, the faculty and our union will need to hit the ground running when the Winter Term begins. Enjoy the break and the time to rest up and return refreshed, ready to tackle the new challenges ahead with energy and focus.