The University of California (UC) filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the United Auto Workers (UAW) union over its ongoing strikes on several campuses, alleging that the striking academic workers are violating their contract.
The suitfiled in California Superior Court in Orange County, requests that the state issue a temporary restraining order to the UAW to halt the strike on UC campuses, arguing that the school system “will suffer irreparable harm” to its operations and educational experience.
UAW 4811, which represents 48,000 academic workers and graduates in the UC system, began its first strike at UC Santa Cruz on May 2, before later expanding to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of California , Davis, last week. , then to UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara and UC Irvine this week. Approximately 31,000 union members are on strike.
The strike was authorized in protest of the UC system’s response to pro-Palestinian protests on campus this spring, some of which led to the arrest and suspension of several students and union members. UCLA suffered one of the most violent outbreaks amid this month’s nationwide demonstrations, when counterprotesters attacked pro-Palestinian activists for hours before police intervened.
The UC lawsuit accuses UAW 4811 of violating its contracts, which the school system says has a strike clause.
“The UAW’s blatant violation of the parties’ no-strike clauses will continue to cause irreversible harm to the University as it will disrupt the education of thousands of students in the form of canceled classes and late grades,” Melissa Matella, associate vice president for working relationships, said in a statement on Wednesday.
“Breach of contract also endangers life-saving research in hundreds of laboratories across the University and will also cause substantial monetary harm to the University,” she added.
The Hill has reached out to UAW 4811 for comment.
Union members have argued that their free speech rights were violated when UC system leaders called on police to forcibly remove pro-Palestinian encampments and are demanding “amnesty” for all academic staff, students, student groups , teachers and staff facing disciplinary action or arrest due to their protests.
Members also call for protecting free speech and political expression on campus, along with divestment from UC’s “known investments in weapons manufacturers, military contractors and companies that profit from Israel’s war in Gaza.” the union declared online.
Striking members of UAW 4811 have “cut back” on teaching, conducting research and performing professional duties, the lawsuit alleged, amid the final week of classes and ongoing final exams. UC alleged that members carrying signs blocked campus access points, parking lots and loading docks and “trespassed and barricaded themselves” in UCLA buildings.
Earlier this week, the school system said it expected the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) to impose an injunction on the union to stop “this precedent-setting illegal action,” but PERB denied the request on Monday. .
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
