UC Workers Ratify Deal That Averted Strike: California Brief

UC Workers Approve Strike-Averting Deal

A sign in front of the UC Berkeley campus in Berkeley, Calif.

Photographer: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

University of California healthcare and service workers overwhelmingly approved a new labor agreement that delivers higher wages and layoff protections, locking in a deal reached just hours before an open-ended strike was set to begin late last week, George Weykamp reports. AFSCME Local 3299 said members voted 96.4% in favor of ratification.

The union represents roughly 30,000 healthcare workers and several thousand custodians, groundskeepers, and food service employees across UC’s 10 campuses. The parties had been bargaining since the prior contract expired in 2024, with AFSCME accusing the university of illegally ...