Tuesday, 5/27/97 SAGE, university assess impact of picket lines
STRIKE: Union claims more undergraduate, faculty support than
ever
By A.J. Harwin Daily Bruin Contributor While some undergraduates
had their classes cancelled or moved because of last week’s Student
Association of Graduate Employees (SAGE/UAW) strike, the action’s
impact on the university was termed "negligible" by some
administrators at the close of the picket lines last Friday. SAGE
officials, by contrast, believe support for the graduate union is
at an all-time high, as shown by the number of graduate students
and other unions on the picket lines. According to SAGE estimates,
the number of TAs, readers and tutors on strike exceeded the number
of those on strike last November, with more than half to two-thirds
of all TAs, readers and tutors on the picket lines. "We had about
200 people at the rally at the top of Bruin Walk, and 400 people at
the rally with the asbestos workers Wednesday afternoon," said
Susan Conrad, a SAGE executive board member. "I counted at least 20
different community and labor organizations that came out in
support of the strike, and I think that kind of support shows that
this issue is about the larger problem, which is that UCLA is
currently not acting as a responsible employer. "We definitely got
stronger support from undergraduates than ever before," she added.
SAGE officials estimate the group received about 1500 signatures on
the picket lines and that community and labor support for the group
is near its peak. The group tried to make its absence felt by
having TA-led discussion sessions and classes held off-campus. Some
faculty in support of the strike helped by moving their lectures
off campus or after the picket lines closed at 6 p.m. Faculty
support for the group was stronger that ever, Conrad claimed. "One
of the ways that we measure that is that we keep track of faculty
who are willing to move their classes off-campus," she said. "The
two buildings that we suggested, the University Religious
Conference Building and the UCLA Labor Center, were booked solid
and, in fact, were overbooked," Conrad added. But according to
administrators, SAGE support seems to be on the decline and the
most recent strike has been counterproductive at best. The
administration’s stance remained consistent throughout the strike
and is still waiting on an appeal made by SAGE to the Public
Employee Relations Board before making a final decision on the
recognition of SAGE. "The university does not intend at present
time to voluntarily recognize the union," said Robin Fisher,
associate dean of the UCLA graduate division and administrative
representative for SAGE. "Our assessment of this week’s strike’s
impact was negligible, and we still need to see what the Public
Employee Relations Board says," Fisher said. TAs choosing not to
participate in the strike said they did not see an effect of the
three-day strike. "In my area, there appeared to be no impact at
all," said Gregg Gold, a psychology graduate student. "Franz Hall
was full, and I noticed quite a few previously outspoken SAGE/UAW
members around during the day. "I am not personally aware of any
classes or sections being canceled," he said. Gold claimed this
strike was much weaker than the one last November, when buildings
were plastered with signs and chalk writings urging support of
SAGE. "Judging from the extremely poor support of the strike from
SAGE/UAW members – not to mention the rest of campus – I think that
this strike has severely hurt the credibility of the union," Gold
said. "This strike has made it painfully clear that SAGE has
nowhere near the graduate student support that it claims," he
continued. Despite any setbacks, academic student employees
throughout the UC system plan for the strikes to continue. Next
week, academic student employees at UCSB will be the last of the
five campuses to strike this spring, joining UC Berkeley, UC San
Diego, UC Santa Cruz and UCLA. "We’re going to be holding a
membership meeting to discuss future plans," Conrad said. "We’re
definitely excited by the show of support from campus community,
labor community and obviously, academic student employees from this
strike. … We can continue to build on the work that we’ve done
and the successes this year."