CAPS labor strike

PHOTO: Protesters in Sacramento

By Harald Tollerup

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

On November 15, 16, and 17 the California Association of Professional Scientists (CAPS) striked in an effort to negotiate their contract for increased pay and better benefits. The three day strike is leading into the California Democratic Party Fall Convention in Sacramento. 

“We are just asking for fairness, for fair pay,” said a strike captain and member of the union bargaining team Peter Kerr.

Years have gone by without a new contract for state employed scientists yet due to a ‘no strike’ clause in their prior contract they were unable to demand change. Currently with a new contract underway, the protestors are striking across California for an upwards of 160 million dollar pay increase. That may seem like a lot but the reality is that an increase in pay that large is not uncommon.

“The engineers who got a new contract in 2022. They asked for 200 million dollars and got it. Prison guards requested 1 billion dollars and got it,” Kerr said. 

In addition to a strike in Sacramento, union members and workers are striking across the state. While a strike was going on in Sacramento, state scientists in Ventura County were gathering outside of the Ventura County Government Center on November 16 and 17. During that same time workers in Oakland were striking outside of the Oakland State Building.

On the first day of the Sacramento strike it was estimated that one thousand people showed up, according to the organizers. The union itself is forty three hundred strong. The majority of that union population is in Sacramento.

“It (Sacramento) is kinda our powerhouse. It is where we need to press our interests with the Governor,” Kerr said. “The Newsome administration is sabotaging things that he said are important, science and climate.”

A union member and Senior Environmental Scientist is fed up with Newsome’s hypocrisy “Gavin Newsome throws money everywhere. But for scientists they say we don’t have enough money. It’s not true,” they said.

Discontent with Californian administrations over labor is nothing new. The origin of the strikes came from the recall of Grey Davis. Engineers forced Davis to negotiate a new contract by threatening to support the recall. Eventually they won a new contract with the state that guaranteed a wage increase of 10% each year, for four years. Scientists were going to negotiate a contract but soon Davis was recalled. Arnold Schwarzenegger was uncooperative and so was Jerry Brown. 

In 2014 they filed a “like pay, like work” lawsuit and won. That lawsuit though only increased wages for managing scientists, not the rank and file workers. For example, the Senior Environmental Scientist Supervisory position received a three thousand dollar a month increase whereas the Senior Environmental Scientist Specialist position received nothing.

Now state scientists are trying to gain a much needed pay increase. Yet for some it is not only just the pay. “For me it’s not the pay, it’s the respect,” a Senior Environmental Scientist said. 

Although they personally are not in financial hardship, many more are. “I have friends and colleagues who are living paycheck to paycheck,” they said.

Negotiations will continue after the strike and if a contract is not agreed upon the future is uncertain. “This is a limited three day strike for this time but if we don’t get a contract there will be additional strikes and they will likely be more open ended.”