Wayne State workers face takeback drive

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SOCIALIST ACTION JULY 1988 5 DETROIT—At the end of July, 905 campus workers at Wayne State University face the expiration of two-year concessionary contracts. The workers include members of United Auto Workers union (UAW) Local 2071, about 200 professional and administrative employees of UAW Local 1979, and members of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP).

In September 1986, the clerical workers fought the concessions tooth and nail during a militant strike. Lifted on a strike wave that had been rolling through Detroit (including AFSCME Council 25 city workers and the public-school secretaries), the campus workers could have made historic gains.

But through no fault of their own, they did not. Their militancy and determination contrasted sharply with the passivity and treachery of the UAW heads.

On Sept. 4, 1986, three campus unions struck together with very enthusiastic and vocal pickets. But by 9:45 a.m., the AAUP leadership broke the tri-union coalition and settled for a concessionary contract that included a 60-percent cost to the employee for medical benefits-something they had agreed not to accept.

This hurt the strike tremendously and created bad feelings between the staff and the AAUP unions. A good many sympathetic professors, however, remained on the picketlines. The student council held a rally and denounced the AAUP leaders for sabotaging the strike.

By the last day of the strike, the Local 2071 strike committee was planning a large demonstration with support from other locals around Detroit. They planned to march across campus, sending strikers into the departments to bring out all workers and teachers in an effort to shut down the university.

These tactics the of the strike began to frighten the UAW tops and some local leaders. On Sept. 18, 1986, on the advice of the international union representatives, the local leadership settled for a concessionary contract.

UAW tops urge concessions The proposed contract included continued frozen step increases, continued merit pay—which was now to be worked into an "across-the-board increase" of 4.7 percent— medical costs of 60 percent to the employee, loss of longevity pay for higher seniority workers, increased parking fees, and negative changes in vacation accruals.

The ratification vote of the ranks was split right down the middle-253 for, 250 opposed. The real roots of the dissension in Local 2071, which has unfolded these last two years, is directly related to the role of the UAW international representatives in the strike and their policy.

The international officials concocted a court-injunction "bogey man" to convince members to go back to work. They feared the strike could completely get out of hand and threaten the cozy relations between the UAW officials and Democratic Party Governor James J. Blanchard's office. At the time, the UAW was conducting a campaign for Blanchard's re-election.

In addition, as a union steward aptly pointed out in the ratification meeting, if the UAW officials gave full backing to the strike, they would be on the spot to defend the Chrysler and GM workers from concessions as well.

It appears that the professors and graduate teachers are in no mood for more concessions this time around. The issue of forming a coalition with the other campus unions will surely come up—as it has in the past.

Workers and students infuriated University President David Adamany's heavy-handed, top-down authoritarianism has created very serious morale problems among the faculty. Adamany, who earns more money than any other university president in Michigan (over $132,000), has been well rewarded for his strikebreaking efforts.

Recently, the Board of Governors hiked up President Adamany's salary by 6 percent—retroactive to last year. At the same time, a tuition increase of 8 percent was approved. This has infuriated workers and students alike, and can be a starting point for unified struggle.

In addition, the university hired an outfit to reclassify all jobs—called the Hay Study. Since there have been no salaries attached to new job descriptions, no one is sure what the reclassifications really mean. Surely, this effort to erode the union and to pit workers against each other will be at the center of upcoming negotiations.

A more democratic union Over the last two years of continuous struggle, pressure has built for a responsive leadership, including the formation of "Concerned Members," a local grouping that met regularly, though never as a clearly defined caucus with a definite program.

This grouping has helped establish more democratic atmosphere and a keen desire not to accept any further concessions in the ranks. Many bones of contention remain, however. One big source of aggravation in the local is over-reliance on arbitration and other "higher authorities" versus mass forms of struggle.

A strike committee is already in place and has set up a phone tree in the zones. The education committee has held stewardtraining seminars, and a series of zone meetings have been held with the membership to determine contractual demands.

It is clear, however, that Local 2071 leaders are going to have to face up to a difficult situation without any bluffing. Today there is no broader city-wide strike movement to buoy up the struggle in these negotiations. There should be no overestimation of the ability to involve several hundred new, mostly young, inexperienced people in the union.

A real test of leadership will be the ability to draw out the bitter lessons of the last contract round. The whole union can then proceed with confidence against an administration hellbent on breaking the unions and the very real prospect of future cave-ins on the part of the UAW international representatives.

On June 15, Students for Socialist Action held a forum on campus concerning the contract negotiations. Although there was a small turnout, the forum received a headline article in the campus newspaper, which has stimulated widespread discussion.