Skilled trade workers at California State University campuses went on strike after not receiving a 5 percent pay increase that was expected in July.
At Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, 87 employees represented by Teamsters Local 2010 are participating, including electricians, plumbers, carpenters, HVAC technicians, and mechanics. The union represents roughly 1,100 CSU skilled trade workers statewide, and the strike is expected to run through Feb. 20.
“The regular working people who keep our campuses running continue to struggle to make ends meet,” Assemblymember Dawn Addis said in a Feb. 5 letter to CSU Chancellor Mildred Garcia. “If solutions can be found to navigate fiscal challenges to support raises for those at the top, CSU leadership must be able to support the skilled trade workers who are vital to campus operations.”
She criticized the CSU system’s “decision to approve pay increases for CSU presidents—already among the highest-compensated executives in the system.”
In November, Cal Poly President Jeffrey Armstrong received a pay increase of over $100,000, making him the highest-paid CSU president, with additional raises approved in January. Armstrong’s base salary is expected to rise to $611,203 over the next two years, and he could receive up to a 15 percent performance-based increase funded individually by the campus.
The strike stems from a contract dispute over 2025-26 salary provisions, which had been contingent on the CSU system receiving approximately $250 million in new, ongoing state funding. The state budget instead reduced CSU’s base funding by about $143.8 million, providing a zero-interest loan as a temporary offset.
The core of the disagreement revolves around how the union’s contract defines “full funding.”
Teamsters Local 2010 argues that the $144 million zero-interest loan included in the 2025-26 state budget counts as full funding, which should trigger the promised base salary increases. CSU leaders counter that the loan is temporary and cannot support ongoing raises. The university has instead offered a one-time 3 percent bonus, which it plans to distribute this month to nonunion staff in management, executive, and confidential positions while negotiations with the union continue.
According to the California Faculty Association, the strike reflects decades of inequities for long-serving employees. In January 2024, Teamsters 2010 members won a three-year contract that included a 5 percent general salary increase with retroactive pay and the creation of a salary step system—the first in nearly 30 years.
Cal Poly Interim Vice President for University Personnel Lauren Daly reminded employees that participating in the strike is voluntary.
“While a strike has been authorized by the union, participation is voluntary. … Because employees are not paid while on strike, the pay for an employee who strikes for four workdays will be reduced by approximately 18 percent for that pay period,” she wrote in an email.
In a letter to students, Vice President for Strategic Enrollment Management Terrance Harris told the campus community: “Classes, instruction, and student services will continue. … Students may see picket lines at some campus entrances but are permitted to cross them or use alternative entrances. You are not required to provide your name or any personal information to anyone on a picket line.”
The strike is legally protected under state law and has drawn support from other CSU unions, the California Labor Federation, and Teamsters Joint Councils 7 and 42.
Negotiations between CSU leadership and Teamsters Local 2010 are ongoing. ∆
This article appears in Feb 19-26, 2026.