University Council-AFT, California

Splashy protests focus membership

University Council-AFT, representing non-senate faculty and librarians on all campuses of the University of California, has taken to heart the undeniable value of personal connection, hitting the pavement to meet colleagues and talk up union membership. The result: 700 new members recruited within the last year. The number reflects about 1,500 face-to-face conversations, and a 55 percent success rate.

At UC-Santa Cruz alone, a membership sign-up "blitz" reached a 70 percent success rate. One reason: rallies that demanded more job security for lecturers, featuring giant, colorful, oversized puppets; skits; singalongs; and members in costume. The events are splashy and fun, but even the fanciful "St. Precaria," a made-up icon that watches over those with "precarious" employment positions, makes serious demands for job security among contingent faculty.

Pairing creativity with a focus on one particular meaningful issue (job security) has drawn attention not only to advances for the faculty (and therefore the students they serve) but also to the importance of solidarity in union membership. It takes a local to make a puppet: A puppet- making workshop, held in a big field in front of the university, preceded the rallies, and students were invited to help with finishing touches. "It's collaborative," says Roxi Power, president of the UC-AFT local in Santa Cruz. "It's art activism."

Also important, says Bill Quirk, associate director of UC-AFT, is routine member education. At UC-AFT that means workshops about continuing appointment reviews, professional development fund grants and other regularly scheduled activities—all of which help build a strong membership and an effective voice at the bargaining table.