Judge bans some University of California workers from striking
A judge has banned a relative handful of employees who provide patient care at University of California medical facilities from participating in a statewide strike set for Wednesday.
Sacramento County Superior Court Judge David I. Brown said that a strike by about 50 AFSCME-covered employees, mostly respiratory theratpists, would “create a substantial and imminent threat to the health and safety of the public and patients of the five UC Medical Centers.” Brown issued a temporary restraining order barring that group from a work stoppage.
The unversity system made hay of the ruling with a press release titled, “Court injunction limits striking employees at UC medical centers,” but ignores the fact that the ruling applies only to about 50 of the 21,000 employees covered by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299. A university system representative wasn’t immediately available for comment.
AFSCME has called the strike in response to what the it claims was a pattern of illegal intimidation against members who participated in a two-day walkout in May. The union has been without a contract for more than a year and its members are now working under terms imposed by the university system.
[Source]: Sacramento Bee
