Teaching assistants, grading assistants and instructional student aides have united, ready to strike on Thursday because of unresolved labor disputes.

The California Alliance of Academic Student Employees, a union for California State University student teaching assistants, grading assistants and instructional assistants,has decided to strke, citing the CSU’s chronic unfair labor practices and its failure to produce a contract that meets its demands.

Last December, the group went on strike for one day. The union first organized in January 2004 but was not recognized by the CSU system until August 2004.

“People really want (the strike) to happen,” said Xochitl Lopez, who works for the University Union and currently attends Sacramento State. “The university is stalling, and we’re up against the end of the semester.”

The union is asking for a guaranteed 12 percent pay increase, health insurance, paid student tuition and fees, as well as job security agreements, according to the chancellor’s office.

Negotiations continued last week, but Clara Potes-Fellow, public information officer for the chancellor’s office, said the two groups were far from reaching an agreement.

“What they’re asking for is unrealistic,” Potes-Fellow said. “It would cost $46 million a year for the CSU system.”

Lopez said there are several hundred Sac State student employees who are union members. She also said that other university students are shocked when they hear what CSU student aides are paid and of their lack of benefits.

“The formation of the union came at a really bad economic time,” said David Wagner, vice president of human resources at Sac State.

“There just wasn’t any funds to give raises.”

The union is asking that even part-time employees receive their tuition and student fees paid, as they are for employees in the UC system.

Wagner said when the union compares the CSU’s system to the UC’s, it’s like comparing apples to oranges.

“In the UC system, graduate students often work for as long as seven years while going through grad school,” Wagner said. “Most appointments here at Sac State are for just a semester. That’s an important difference.”

Julie Peterson is a graduate student that works in the Learning Skills Center and supervises fellow graduate students who help other students improve their writing skills.

She works 15 hours per week and makes $12.95 per hour.

“This makes me feel undervalued,” Peterson said. “I’m ready to strike. This is vital to have a quality university, and I want to graduate from a quality university.”

Peterson also said she is having trouble filling positions at the Learning Skills Center because of the low pay scale.

“All of us are ready to strike,” said Eric Terry, graduate student and math teaching assistant. “The university has been stalling way too long. They even hired a very expensive law firm to break the union, but it didn’t work.”

Wagner said most of the student employees opted not to strike back in December.

He said that there are issues that need addressing and should be resolved concerning the student employees, such as job security and appointment rights. Budget cuts will make the financial end of their requests hard to meet.

“Who’s going to pay for it?” Wagner said. “If the money comes out of other budgets, what programs will have to be cut?”

Lopez said the student union is also asking for a provision of standard information that would allow them to have access to all student employee names.

“This is required by law,” Lopez said. “This is another area where the university has been dragging its feet. We’ve endured a lot of delays.”

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Karen Marie Watson can be reached at [email protected]