UC-AFT President Comments on Senate-UCOP Pro-Yudof Letter

Faculty and staff need to respond to the letter from the academic council admonishing people for not supporting President Yudof. First of all, the letter implies that only unions have voted no confidence in the UC president, and this insults all of the non-unionized students, faculty, and staff who participated in the vote. It also neglects the fact that a separate move by the faculty is underway to voice a collective rejection of Yudof's leadership. However, the biggest problem is that the people at the top of the academic council are from the medical field, and it just so happens that the highest paid faculty in the university, the medical professors, are now completely excluded from the furlough plan. No wonder Mary Croughan and Henry Powell are so accepting of Yudof's plan; it just so happens that someone has negotiated a special deal to keep the highest paid people protected.

Meanwhile, the university is embarking on an all-out union-busting campaign complete with the hiring of a very expensive outside law firm and a strategy to blame the unions for not accepting the furloughs. As a union president, let me tell you that the university has blocked our ability to even start the conversation about the furlough plan. Instead, management is trying to turn the faculty against the unionized workers, while the administration continues to layoff represented employees.

Faculty, students, staff, and all employees need to stand together and fight the administration's attempt to divide and conquer. Please get involved and help to defend our university.

Bob Samuels, President, UC-AFT