Frequently Asked Questions

We are a group of Student Services and Advising Professionals (SSAPs) who formed a union in order to have a greater say over our working conditions and improve our ability to serve UC students and community. Our work not only keeps the University of California running but also has lasting impacts on hundreds of thousands of students. 

By forming a union, SSAPs are democratizing our workplace. A union gives us more rights and the power to make improvements at work. We have joined thousands of other unionized workers at UC who have negotiated legally binding contracts that increase equity and transparency in the terms and conditions of our employment.

There are several job titles that fall under the umbrella term of Student Services and Advising Professionals. There are also business titles or common use titles that fall within these official job titles. The official UC titles that are included in this unit are:

ACAD ACHIEVEMENT CNSLR (2-4)
ADMISSIONS RECRMT SPEC (1-4)
CAREER SVC SPEC (2-4)
CURRICULUM PLNR (2-4)
FINANCIAL AID OFCR (2-4)
STDT AFFAIRS OFCR (1-4)
STDT ACAD SPEC (1-4)
STDT DISABILITY SPEC (1-4)
HEALTH EDUCATOR (1-4)
STDT ACAD ADVISOR (1-4)
STDT LIFE DEV SPEC (1-4)
REGISTRAR SPEC (2-4)
ADVOCATE (3-4)
INDUSTRY ALLNS SPEC (2-3)
STDT SVC ADVISOR (1-4)

You can read the full text of our contract here.

Highlights include:

Wages

• At least 27.8% wage increase over the life of the contract

  • Use this calculator template to calculate your future wages

• Within Year 1: 

  • 5% across-the-board increases effective July 1st, 2026 

  • 1% ratification bonus within 90 days of ratification

  • 1% base-building bonus January 1, 2027

• Enforceable process to create a step wage system guaranteeing progressive wage increases every year of the contract. On average, increases of at least 2% in addition to annual across-the-board increases.

  • Step system placement will account for years of service

• Maintain access to STAR awards

Job Security: Contract to Career Conversion

• Ending practice of contract work for SSAP and RPSPs

• Pathway to conversion for all current contract and limited appointment employees to career positions with layoff rights and full benefits

• Protections against the misuse of floater and limited appointments

Job Security: Layoff Protections

• Layoffs will occur in inverse order of seniority, ensuring no favoritism in layoff selection

• Employees must receive at least 30 days notice or pay in lieu of notice

• All career employees have the option to choose either: one week of severance for every year worked up to 16 weeks, or preferential rehire and recall rights

• Contract-to-career conversion expands pool of eligibility for severance and preferential rehire

• Remote workers unable to comply with a return-to-office mandate are now eligible for layoff benefits

Healthcare and Retirement Benefits

• Annual caps on healthcare premium increases (7.5% cap for Kaiser, 5% cap for UC Blue & Gold)

• Monthly subsidies on employee contributions for healthcare premiums for Kaiser & UC Blue & Gold

• A monetary increase in retirement account contributions due to our substantial wage increases

• Maintained retirement choice options 

Grievance and Arbitration

• Fair process with enforceable timelines when UC violates the contract (a “grievance”)

• Grievances are appealable to a neutral, third-party arbitrator who makes a binding decision

• Employees are made whole when an arbitrator rules that UC violated the contract 

Fair and Equitable Career Progression

• Fair and enforceable process to request reclassification and address career stagnation

• Every employee is entitled to a clear job description and timely reviews for promotion as your job responsibilities increase

• Additional job responsibilities will come with additional pay and fair pathways to promotion

• Misclassifications can be addressed through the grievance and arbitration process

• Protections against biased or retaliatory performance evaluations

• University-required training will be considered paid time

• Training and development leave can be used for taking certification exams related to your career

Workload 

• Workload must be reasonable

• Stipends to compensate employees for taking on additional duties

• Opportunity for non-exempt workers to request preferable shift assignments

• Clarification and protections for On-Call staff

Flexible Work Agreements (Remote/Hybrid)

• Right to negotiate over impacts of flexible work policies

• Fair standards for maintaining existing agreements, including informal, ad-hoc agreements between managers and staff

• Clear, criteria-based procedure to change agreements and arbitrable protections against arbitrary,  capricious, and/or discriminatory RTO orders

• Right to request & just processes for evaluating new, flexible work agreements

• Assurance of fair disability accommodation procedures involving remote/hybrid Arrangements

• First-of-its-kind layoff protections for staff more than 50 miles from their home campus and benefits for employees who cannot return to work if needed, including up to $3,000 to assist with moving expenses

• Article is enforceable through the grievance and arbitration process

Vacation and Leaves

• One new floating holiday per year that can be used any time, including during Winter Curtailment

• Three days of available sick leave for new employees

• Total of twelve months leave for new birth parents, including eight weeks guaranteed paid parental leave and six months childcaring leave regardless of FMLA eligibility

New Technology

• New technology, such as AI, cannot be used to replace our professional judgment

• University must negotiate the impacts of new technology in our workplaces

Immigration

• Guaranteed leave to attend immigration hearings and additional job security related to work visa issues

• Agreement from management to notify us in the event that ICE enters our work spaces

• Job protections for employees who are detained due to their immigration status

• Reasonable efforts for reemployment for workers with work authorization terminated, then re-obtained

Disability Accommodations

• The interactive process for accommodations is enforceable through the contract

• Management is required to provide immediate workplace adjustments during the accommodations process

Workplace Abuse Protections, Respectful Work Environment, and Non-Discrimination

• Accountability for anti-discrimination, bullying, and harassment policies through neutral third-party arbitration

• Immediate action from management when allegations of bullying, harassment, or discrimination are made;

• Provision of interim measures to allow staff to continue to work during the process

• Ability to grieve, arbitrate, and rebut a performance evaluation’s content, form, timing, procedure, impacts, and process as they relate to a respectful work environment, non-discrimination, or other right

Just Cause for Discipline and Dismissal

• UC can only discipline or dismiss an employee with fair notice and just cause, and has the burden of proof to show that discipline is justified

• Expedited grievance and arbitration process to resolve discipline cases

• Disciplinary documents removed from personnel file after two years

Union Rights

• Collective voice at work

• Mandatory paid union orientations for new employees

• Right to pool our resources through automatic union dues deductions

• Right to request and receive information about our working conditions

• Right of individuals to follow their conscience and refuse to cross a picket line

Ready to sign a union membership card? Click here to sign a card.

UAW membership dues are 1.44% of gross income and are automatically deducted from every union member’s paycheck.

Our union takes no outside funding, so membership dues are the only way all of our coworkers will have the resources to enforce our contract. Being a dues-paying member, ensures the contract is upheld and that we can maintain the higher wages and other protections we won.  

Because of Trump’s Supreme Court Justices decision in the Janus v. AFSCME case, each worker at UC must individually elect to be a union member or not. Every new union member makes it more likely that staff will win higher salaries and more rights.

Our union is of, by, and for UC employees, which means no outside funding. Membership dues ensure we are accountable only to each other, not to outside funders.

One portion of our dues will support the day to day work of our union at UC: preparing for and engaging in contract negotiations, enforcing our contract, educating coworkers about their rights, and hiring staff to support members in organizing and building our collective strength..

We are also a part of the broader International Union UAW, and another portion of dues goes towards the International Fund, which provides expertise and support regarding negotiations, contract enforcement, legal assistance, and most importantly helps support other groups of workers to form unions with UAW. Some of this money will also go to support new organizing efforts of other workers at UC — just as we were supported throughout this process of forming SSAP-UAW and RPSP-UAW!

The remaining portion goes towards the UAW Strike and Defense Fund, which provides benefits and a financial safety net in the event that members vote to strike. A majority of UC-UAW staff voted overwhelmingly in our Strike Authorization Vote (SAV) last month knowing that, if circumstances justified withholding our labor, all workers would have access to financial assistance through the UAW Strike Fund. 

UC-UAW staff formed our union and negotiated a strong contract through the financial support of hundreds of thousands of UAW members across the country. Now that we have a contract, we need our own resources to enforce the contract, continue to build our power, and help more workers join our movement at UC and beyond.

All workers in SSAP/RPSP job titles are automatically included in the bargaining unit and will benefit from the contract upon ratification. Being a member means contributing your share to the collective pool of resources we need to enforce our rights, fight for future improvements, and ensure strong workplace protections. UC sees our membership numbers as a sign of that strength, unity, and leverage to hold them to their end of the agreement.

The Voluntary Community Action Program (V-CAP) is our union’s political action program, which includes a fund made up of voluntary contributions from UAW members. The money is used to support legislation and political candidates endorsed by UAW members. As public employees at the UC, state & federal law can either expand or undercut the rights and benefits we win in our collective bargaining agreements.

V-CAP is the main way that members pool collective resources to fight right-wing attacks on the working people, expand our rights, and fund public higher education. For instance, V-CAP contributions are used for the campaign to pass a $23 billion bond, Save Science Save Lives, to fund science, education, and healthcare in California.

While UAW began as an auto worker union, there are now over 100,000 higher ed workers in UAW, making UAW one of the largest unions of higher ed workers in the country. Nearly half of those workers are here at UC and include a wide variety of job titles. About 1/3rd of all UAW workers are higher ed workers. 

UAW has historically been one of the largest and most diverse unions in North America. By joining this movement, SSAPs also gain political power to impact policy and funding decisions on the local, state, and federal levels.

The best way to learn more is to speak with a colleague who is organizing. During this meeting you can ask additional questions or get clarification on information in this document as well as sharing your own experiences and learn how to get involved. You can schedule a meeting via Calendly or email ssap.info@uc-uaw.org.

Yes. UC doesn’t make this determination, the state labor board does. Until a future agreement with the state labor board determines each alleged supervisor’s eligibility, you can (and should!) fully participate in our union, including becoming a member.