Cal State University faculty strike may be averted

A historic strike by Cal State University faculty may be averted in the next couple of days, members of the union representing professors aounced Wednesday.

“There is hope that talks between the Califoia Faculty Association and the Califoia State University may avert a five-day, systemwide strike on all 23 campuses scheduled to begin April 13,” CFA officials said in a news release.

According to CFA — which represents 26,000 tenured and tenure-track instructional faculty, lecturers, librarians, counselors and coaches — the union and management are working on a solution to their fight over pay, with faculty having called for a 5 percent raise and the Long Beach-based Chancellor’s Office offering a 2 percent increase.

Both sides have agreed to honor a 48-hour blackout period on communicating with the media, according to the CFA.

CFA leaders and CSU officials plan to hold a joint news conference on Friday in Sacramento, possibly to aounce a settlement.

“Neither party will respond to media inquiries nor conduct media interviews regarding the status of negotiations or strike preparations during the blackout period,” CFA officials said in a news release.

An independent fact-finder in March determined that the 23-campus system should give professors the raise they’ve been demanding for nearly a year.

Earlier this week, campus officials in Southe Califoia plaed conference calls with reporters to discuss preparations for the strike, which faculty has called the largest walkout in a public university in the history of the U.S.

Those calls were cancelled at the last minute.