The University of California is one of the largest public universities in the United States and the third largest employer in the state. As a result, when UC workers go on strike, the state government can become a crucial point of leverage. Many state legislators, particularly those who serve districts where the UC’s campuses are located, believe strongly in the university’s public mission. During the UAW Fair UC Now Campaign, academic workers sought to challenge the notion that the UC was living up to that public mission in multiple ways as a means to win support from those legislators for their bargaining demands. They sent letters and petitions to legislative offices, lobbied for increased workplace protections, and as captured here, marched on the capitol itself. On Dec. 5, UAW members from UC Davis and other campuses descended on the state capitol building in Sacramento, continuing their march to the Offices of the UC President nearby. They called on state legislators to use their influence to ensure that the UC bargain in good faith and pay all of its employees a livable wage.
Photos from this action, as well as many others, are part of the UAW Fair UC Now 2022 Campaign Collection, part of the Wayne State Reuther Library.