Beating UC’s unnecessary layoffs

As you may have heard, UC San Diego and UC San Francisco announced significant, hospital-wide layoffs last week, with top hospital leadership demanding cuts of 1.5% and 1% of payroll across the board.

Though these cuts were supposedly due to financial necessity, we know that these hospitals are sitting on billions of dollars in reserves—and that these layoffs are likely related to a desire to best position the hospitals to finance even further expansion. UCSF and UC San Diego each have ongoing and planned capital expansion projects totaling more than $10 billion.

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Laying off frontline staff to finance expansion projects, amidst a well-documented crisis of short staffing, is unacceptable and puts patient care, research, and education at risk. 

That's why UPTE's Unit Representatives at both campuses sprang into action, calling emergency meetings and organizing mass meetings to protest the layoffs, and joining pickets in solidarity with AFSCME and CNA workers who are also facing layoffs. UPTE members spoke to the press about the impacts of layoffs on patient care and operations, garnering important coverage across the state, including in the San Francisco Chronicle and 10News – ABC San Diego KGTV.

Thanks to our quick response, some layoffs have already been rescinded, and we are continuing to build pressure to rescind the rest.

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Not all layoffs are being announced publicly, and we are aware that UC is not properly notifying UPTE in all cases. If you receive an unexpected layoff notice, please reach out to your UPTE Organizer or Unit Representative to understand your rights and discuss ways to fight back.

Fortunately, UPTE contracts ensure that we maintain the right to preferential rehire and recall in the event of layoffs—a benefit that UC has stripped from many non-union workers. 

In our ongoing contract negotiations, we are demanding that UC offer vacant positions to workers facing layoffs; something they have already agreed to with our AFSCME 3299- and CNA-represented colleagues.

When we fight, we win!

In solidarity,

Dan Russell
UPTE President & Chief Negotiator
Business Technology Support Analyst, UC Berkeley