Last week, UCLA students were informed of a strike taking place on May 14th, 2026, impacting food, custodial, groundskeeping, and storekeeping services. When I read this, I immediately had flashbacks to the strike that took place earlier this school year in late 2025. I waited in line for a burrito for two hours during midterm season, and I felt at the time that the strike was a huge inconvenience for me, affecting not only my stomach but also my grades.
This, however, is a very self-centered perspective. What felt like an inconvenience for me was really a time when the workers who hold our school together took a stance against unfair employment circumstances. I think UC employers also had a flashback to the earlier strike, because when May 14th arrived, the UCs announced that they had reached an agreement with AFSCME, the union that had organized the strike, before the strike even began. The threat of striking, especially with an indefinite end, was enough to cause the UC employers to take action. While striking can seem inconvenient for students, it serves as a catalyst for improving the lives of thousands of workers, whether the strike actually happens or not.
So, what was the purpose of the strike? For the past 2 years, the UCs have failed to settle contracts that address economic issues. The strike on November 17th and 18th was a demonstration of the frustration that employees felt with unlivable wages in the current economy. Inflation means rising costs of living, and it should mean rising wages, especially for necessary workers such as those in food service and healthcare.
AFSCME vice president and Local 3299 President Michael Avant said, “During nearly two years of bargaining, UC has spent billions of dollars acquiring new facilities, lavishing exorbitant raises on its wealthiest executives and funding housing assistance programs to help… ivory tower elites… but it won’t offer its front-line workers enough to pay the rent or keep pace with the skyrocketing cost of groceries.”
Initially, the November strikes were meant to be joined by another 21,000 employees with University Professional and Technical Employees (UPTE), but negotiations led to a tentative agreement and open dialogue. AFSCME continued with the strike. Unfortunately, the union did not reach a similar agreement at the time.
What was different this time was the indefinite ending to the strike. Unlike before, where we knew that the strike was taking place over two days, the strike planned for May 14th was planned to last until the UCs gave in to AFSCME Local 3299’s requests. After employees faced two years without a contract, the UCs finally reached a tentative agreement. The tentative contract would offer permanent employees a $1,500 payment and raise the union’s minimum wage to $30.10 by April 2029, according to the Daily Bruin. The contract would also cap healthcare insurance costs, add layoff protections for employees, and provide an additional paid day off.
It is important to acknowledge the costs of striking. Employees who participate are giving up pay and benefits for the days that they strike. The UCLA Human Resources page explicitly states that “employees who are absent from work without authorization during a strike will not be paid for the absence.”
Workers can often depend on their day-to-day wages, so even one day of striking would create a burden on their lives. Participating in a strike is an even greater inconvenience to the participants because they must stand for what they deserve rather than being given it in the first place.
Strikes serve as a check on employers to ensure that workers are not abused. Across California, more than 40,000 striking employees would have a drastic impact on the UC schools. With a system as large as the University of California, it’s important that labor unions such as AFSCME serve their role as a credible threat to ensure that the voice of workers is not ignored.
Rather than focusing on the part that inconveniences us as students, it’s important to show support for the individuals who keep our school running every day.