UPTE, http://upte.org/, stands for University Professional & Technical Employees and was founded in 1990 to organize workers at the University of California. UPTE represents UC's 4000 technical employees, 2000 health care professionals and 4000 researchers.

May 26th, 2005 was an historic day for UPTE as it is the first time the union has conducted a one-day strike on all UC campuses.

When interviewed for this article, Ben Evans, a lab tech at UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture and an UPTE Union member for eight years, said that the workers are currently working in good faith without a contract. One of the main points of contention is that the agreed pay scale and cost of living (2-1/2%) wage increases have been delayed for years.

Also at issue are the allegations of unfair bargaining practices on the part on the UC. Evans also noted a pattern of delays and endless negotiating that seems to be the UC’s tactic of avoiding contractual agreements made with the union. Evans also suggested that the UC’s complex job classification system is being unfairly used by the University to shuttle pay raises and avoid overdue career advancements.

Contract issues are far from settled and more actions can be expected if a contract is not finalized with the coming weeks.

Uploaded here are photos from the one-day UPTE strike on the UCLA campus: