UC-AFT Guidance on Campus Encampments, Actions, and Demonstrations (updated 5.6.2024)
Solidarity encampments have been established at most, but not all, of our campuses. Students in these encampments are expressing their own political views as well as solidarity with student activists on other campuses who have at times faced brutal retaliation from their universities. The University of California, too, has a spotty history of heeding calls for shared governance, academic freedom, and substantive campus democracy and many UC-AFT members worry that their campus administrations will adopt authoritarian enforcement policies towards encampments.
As educators, it is our responsibility to protect the safety and welfare of our students. As unionists, we also know that our students are not the only ones vulnerable to punishment in times of campus unrest. Just as we seek to protect our students, we must work together to ensure the safety and well-being of our colleagues.
**If you have any questions about your rights, and/or believe you are facing retaliation or discipline for asserting your rights, contact us immediately via your chapter leaders, staff, or statewide officers.**
UC-AFT workers are protected by the University of California’s Academic Freedom policy (APM 010) which is codified in Unit 17 and 18 CBAs (collective bargaining agreements). We have the right to express our opinions and to participate in peaceful action as university community members. We must fulfill our professional obligations under the provisions of our Academic Responsibilities (Unit 18 Article 3) and Professional Activities (Unit 17 Article 3) according to our respective CBAs. This means that we must go to work and to class, and we must complete all of our assigned duties as instructional faculty and librarians. Participation in campus activities that do not interfere with those obligations or with the normal functioning of the university is permitted and should not be interfered with by the university.
Like other union-represented employees, teaching faculty and librarians who are represented by UC-AFT have what are known as “Weingarten Rights,” a right to union representation during any investigatory interview with management. If you are asked by your supervisor or administrator to join a meeting that you reasonably believe might lead to discipline, you can request that a union representative of your choosing be present. Note: your supervisor or administrator does not have to notify you of your rights to union representation – you must assert your rights. To do so, say:
“If this discussion could in any way lead to my being disciplined, terminated, or could affect my personal working conditions, I respectfully request that my union representative be present. Until my representative arrives, I choose not to participate in this discussion.”
Academic Freedom allows us to make decisions about our courses, including modifications to pedagogy and course policies. We also have the right to modify our courses in ways that reflect unique circumstances on campus. UC-AFT encourages any teaching faculty member who modifies their course to ensure that changes do not harm students, and to clearly notify all of their students of any change. As we saw during the UAW strike, campus administrators may ask us to participate in their enforcement against the student protestors. You do not have to comply with such requests: your academic freedom gives you a right to maintain and uphold reasonable accommodation agreements during periods of campus unrest.
The answer here is complex. First and foremost, your Academic Freedom ensures that you can discuss with your students events, subject matter, and information of “the widest range of viewpoints in accord with the standards of scholarly inquiry and professional ethics” (APM 010). Within higher education’s academic community, this could include taking class time to address students’ questions about campus activities. But as mentioned above, all UC-AFT workers must also adhere to the provisions in our Academic Responsibility (U18) and Professional Activities (U17) contract articles, which articulate our obligation to deliver instruction and professional work “in accordance with course objectives” (for U18). If you regularly use time in your course for announcements or other things outside of your curriculum, you should be able to talk with your class about encampments, current events, or whatever comes up on campus. However, please be aware that in this moment it is difficult to predict how management will respond to something perceived as activism, especially when so many of us have little job security. This means that taking class time away from the delivery of the assigned curriculum of the course is not advisable or allowed. A good strategy could be to reply to a student with “I’d be happy to discuss this with interested people after class.”
NOTE: For UC-AFT members teaching at Preuss, Geffen, and UCLA’s Lab School, please note that the discussion of controversial current events with minors presents different conditions for instructors. If questions or concerns arise in your workplace, contact your UC-AFT representative immediately.
