May 13, 2024
Dear colleagues,
Campus and world events are impacting many members of our community. We continue to value our shared commitment to free speech and peaceful engagement around difficult issues across the campus. We write this message to remind you of our duty as a public institution, charged with teaching our students and conducting research.
UAW 4811 has announced that a strike authorization vote will take place Monday, May 13 to Wednesday, May 15. A work stoppage could begin as soon as Wednesday evening, following the conclusion of the strike authorization vote. A work stoppage (strike) would violate the contract between UAW and the University and is contrary to our shared responsibilities to our students, research, and the mission of the University of California.
As with any disruption to instruction, in the event of a work stoppage, the university has an obligation to ensure continuity of our instruction and research. We encourage you to confirm you have an updated copy of your gradebook, consider whether any changes may be needed to complete the quarter, and identify contingency plans for any ongoing research that might be impacted by a work stoppage. For more detailed suggestions regarding disruptions to instruction, please review the resources available at the Pedagogical Continuity website.
As a reminder, the Instructor of Record for a course is responsible for the delivery of instruction, including supplying grades in a timely manner. Instructors of Record should work to ensure that all course sections are covered during this time, regardless of whether academic student employees are participating in an unlawful strike or are otherwise unavailable. Chairs and Deans are responsible for ensuring the continuity of instruction when the Instructor of Record is not available. Principal Investigators are responsible for the conduct of research, as well as certifying in UCI's payroll certification system that salaries and wages are accurate, allowable, and properly allocated to each of their federally funded research awards.
We are hopeful that there will not be a work stoppage, but wanted to share this information with you in a timely manner so we can be as prepared as possible.
We have reconvened our Continuity Support Committee and will be providing regular updates on the Continuity website. Please direct any questions to continuity@uci.edu.
Sincerely,
Michael Dennin
Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning
Dean, Division of Undergraduate Education
Professor, Physics & Astronomy
Gillian Hayes
Vice Provost for Graduate Education
Dean, Graduate Division
Robert A. and Barbara L. Kleist Chair in Informatics