Tentative agreement reached | Bargaining update 5/12

May 12, 2023

In this bargaining update: 

  • After 101 days, the ASE bargaining team has reached a tentative agreement with the university. 
  • Voting on the tentative agreement will be from Tuesday, May 16 to Monday, May 22. 
  • We will hold Zoom town halls to discuss the tentative agreement on the following dates:
    • Sunday, May 14 at 3 p.m.
    • Monday, May 15 at 1 p.m.
  • The ASE bargaining team and the university have agreed to remain neutral during the vote. 

After 101 days of bargaining in the EECS/DS staffing negotiations, the ASE bargaining team has reached a tentative agreement with the university. Here’s what is in the tentative agreement.

  • Titles:
    • The departments would create UCS1 and UCS3 titles to replace undergraduate tutors and uGSIs, respectively. 
    • UCS1 would be explicitly permitted to perform grading duties and office hours. 
    • The UCS2 title, which was proposed under previous supposals, would not exist. 
  • Staffing:
    • No commitment to increase staffing from the university. 
    • However, a binding commitment to maintain a ratio of TA hours to tutor/reader hours of 55–45%. Currently, the ratio is 68–32%. This would prevent the university from widely implementing a “tutor army” instructional model. 
    • A binding commitment to spend 100% of EVCP Temporary Academic Staff (TAS) funds on ASEs and instructional staff. 
  • Wages: 
    • 7.5% raises on 10/1/23 and 10/1/24
    • This is equal to the wages proposed under the LBFO, and 21% lower than the wages offered under the full union contract. 
    • Raises for hourly workers would not be affected: $1 raises on 10/1/23 and 10/1/24. 
    • Readers doing office hours would be reclassified as UCS1 and receive an additional $3.16 raise. 
  • Fee remission: 
    • Fee remission for UCS3s would be prorated up to 12 hours:
      • 8 hours = 40% fee remission
      • 10 hours = 50% fee remission
      • 12 hours = 60% fee remission
      • 15 hours = 100% fee remission
      • 20 hours = 100% fee remission
    • In comparison, the full union contract guarantees 100% fee remission for all ASEs, regardless of workload. 
  • Non-economic issues:
    • Additional overwork protection measures
    • Better ASE orientations
    • Requirement of department oversight in ASE hiring decisions
    • Guaranteed free summer 375 courses

You can find the full tentative agreement here and view the entire history of bargaining at our bargaining tracker. For more information about the tentative agreement, including arguments for and against ratification, see here. 

The tentative agreement represents the best deal that the ASE bargaining team believes it is possible to secure given the amount of power, time, and leverage we have. The tentative agreement will be subject to a ratification vote of ASEs in the EECS and Data Science departments. 

If the agreement is ratified, the new titles would come into effect for the Fall 2023 semester. TAs in EECS/DS would be paid at least 21% less than other TAs doing the same work at Berkeley. Because of lower wages and remissions, the university might choose to hire more ASEs than it otherwise would choose to hire under the union contract, and the university would likely continue to offer 8-hour TA positions due to the prorated fee remission. The creation of more permissive staffing structures would also likely allow the university to shift many current TAs into being lower paid UCS1s; the 55-45 ratio of TAs to hourly labor would prevent the university from completely creating a “tutor army.” Significant enforcement effort, and a broad willingness to file grievances, would still be necessary to ensure our classes are well staffed. The university would also agree to a variety of non-economic proposals; the better union orientations provision in particular could improve our power at the next round of bargaining in two years by better organizing the departments. 

If the agreement is not ratified, ASEs in EECS/DS would receive the full wages and remissions guaranteed under the current union contract—the same as every other undergraduate TA at Berkeley. We would reserve all of our rights, which would mean we could wage a vigorous enforcement campaign against attempts of the university to replace TAs with tutors and readers. If this campaign is successful, all ASEs who hold office hours would be reclassified as TAs. Vigilance over overwork, wage theft, and misclassification in the form of mass grievances would be our best avenue to force the university to not cut staffing. Additionally, unfair labor practice charges levied against the university during the bargaining process would continue, allowing us to fight back against the university’s unlawful practices. The university may attempt to change instructional models and to eliminate 8-hour TAs; ASE militancy would be necessary to avoid this possibility. 

Regardless of how you feel, it is important for you and your colleagues to vote in this ratification process. High participation in the ratification vote will be how we signal to the university that ASEs care about our working conditions and that we will work diligently to enforce whatever agreement we ultimately operate under. Please talk to your coworkers about voting in this campaign. 

Voting information

Voting for the tentative agreement will begin Tuesday, May 16, 2023 at 9:00 a.m. and last through Monday, May 22, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. The election will be held entirely via an online ballot. An invitation to a secret and secure ballot will be sent to you from a secure online voting platform, Simply Voting (vote@simplyvoting.com) at the beginning of the voting period. More detailed information will be sent out soon. 

Eligible voters will include all members in good standing of UAW 2865 who have served or are currently serving as an undergraduate ASE in an EECS, EE, CS, or DATA course. If you are not already a member of UAW 2865, you can join here. 

While the bargaining team has approved the tentative agreement, we are remaining neutral in the vote. The university and its agents have agreed to refrain from communicating with ASEs about issues of bargaining during this period to avoid exercising an undue influence on the vote. We encourage all ASEs to make an informed decision in this vote. 

We will host informational Zoom town halls at this link on the following dates to discuss the tentative agreement: 

  • Sunday, May 14 at 3 p.m.
  • Monday, May 15 at 1 p.m.

I am optimistic that regardless of whatever decision we come to, this will mark a new era of organizing in the EECS/DS departments, and that the democratic vote will reflect the will of the ASEs in the departments. 

In solidarity,

Gabe Classon

CS 61A uGSI

Last updated on May 13, 2023