1. WHAT ARE THE UC FACULTY ASSOCIATIONS?

The Faculty Associations (FAs) are associations of UC Senate faculty on the campuses of the University of California. Each FA is dues supported and therefore completely independent.

In the early 1970’s, a group of Academic Senate faculty at Berkeley concluded that the University by itself could not halt the alarming decline in faculty compensation caused by accelerating inflation and legislative inertia. They also foresaw the day when legislation would allow for public employee unions in higher education. Therefore UC faculty formed associations of Academic Senate faculty first at Berkeley, then at UCLA, and then on all the campuses of the University of California. The FAs helped draft legislation that would help to ensure that the academic quality of the University of California would never be compromised. When that legislation passed (AB 1091) in 1979, it became clear that the authority of the Academic Senate was restricted to academic matters and the Senate could not represent the economic or employment interests of its faculty before the University or the Legislature. A group of Senate faculty–not acting as the Senate but as an independent association of faculty members–would take on that important responsibility.

The Faculty Associations pay no attention at all to the strictly academic issues that take up most of the time and attention of the Academic Senate, like curriculum and hiring and evaluating faculty, unless the Academic Senate asks for our help. We concentrate all of our attention on employer-employee issues like faculty salaries, medical, fringe, and retirement benefits, and other conditions of work like teaching load and outside employment policies. As a membership organization we thus have the best of two worlds: better representation in employment matters, no loss of autonomy in academic matters.

The local campus Faculty Associations join together loosely to form the Council of UC Faculty Associations, our systemwide organization. The chair of each campus FA serves on the Board of the Council. Campus FAs (except Santa Cruz) do not have specific labor rights, but the Council does by virtue of its agency status with the Santa Cruz FA, the legal bargaining agent for the faculty at UCSC. Because of these assigned labor rights, the Office of the President has the obligation to send notices to the Council about any proposed changes to the wages, benefits, hours, and working conditions of UC faculty. If the Council has questions or feels that those changes are not in the best interests of the faculty, the Council has the labor rights to ask for a consulting session with the UC Administration in Oakland.

In Sacramento, the Faculty Associations hire the services of a professional lobbyist so that we can monitor the state’s contribution to UC and what portion of that contribution goes to UC faculty salaries. When there are cuts to be made, we protect faculty interests. We also follow bills that affect faculty concerns and follow the activities of state government organizations that set salary formulas. Because it is state-funded, the Senate may not use its resources to lobby on behalf of faculty interests. Without us, faculty would have to rely on the goodwill of the University and the legislature to address economic issues affecting faculty, and while no one doubts that goodwill, it is always better to have someone asking questions, providing information, and keeping a close lookout. That1s where the UC Faculty Associations come in: we are watchdogs, quiet most of the time, but ready to spring into action on both the campus and statewide levels.

 

2. WHOM DO THE FACULTY ASSOCIATIONS REPRESENT?

  • all ranks of UC Senate faculty
  • emeriti
  • lecturers with security of employment

 

3. WHAT ARE SOME OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE FACULTY ASSOCIATIONS?

On campus, investigate local issues like:

  • parking fees
  • landscape and environmental impact
  • faculty housing
  • compensation plan
  • billing compliance plan
  • UCSF-Stanford Health Care
  • more democratic election of Senate officers

In Sacramento, pursue lobbying issues like:

  • UC budgets
  • administrative salaries
  • senate and assembly bills that affect faculty interests
  • state government agencies that set UC policies

In Oakland, consult with the Office of the President on:

  • benefits
  • salaries
  • working conditions of UC faculty

 

4. HOW ARE THE FACULTY ASSOCIATIONS ORGANIZED?

At most of the campuses, the Faculty Associations are governed by an Executive Board. Each spring, a nominating committee offers the names of FA members to serve for 2-year terms. A slate of candidates willing to serve is published for the members, who can either accept the slate or nominate other faculty. The Boards elect officers from among their members, usually to serve for two-year terms.

At the systemwide level, the chairs of the campus faculty associations serve on the Council and elect a President and Vice President.

 

5. HOW MUCH ARE THE FA DUES AND HOW ARE THEY SPENT?

Faculty Association dues vary according to campus policies. Please refer to the section Join the Faculty Associations and follow the link to a specific campus to see the dues structure. Some part of campus dues money goes toward paying Council dues, the bulk of which pays for a professional lobbyist in Sacramento and a legislative monitoring service that alerts us to bills that affect UC faculty interests. Some of the Council dues go toward paying for two staff positions–Executive Director and Lobbying Coordinator. In addition to paying Council dues, some campus FAs use a good part of their dues income to pay for the services of a campus FA Executive Director and to cover the expenses of newsletters, transportation to Oakland and Sacramento, and other meeting and office expenses.