In an effort to reach a resolution after 15 months of negotiations, the University of California (UC) today presented its Last, Best and Final Offer (LBFO) to the University Professional and Technical Employees (UPTE) union.
The offer reflects movement by UC toward addressing UPTE’s priorities, including an additional wage increase and measures to help offset rising health care costs for more than 19,000 UPTE-represented employees across the system. It comes amidst significant financial uncertainty faced by the UC system due to federal and state activities.
“Over the course of these negotiations, UC has listened carefully and made meaningful movement to address employee concerns,” said Missy Matella, Associate Vice President for Systemwide Employee and Labor Relations. “This Last, Best and Final Offer provides competitive wage increases, targeted market adjustments, support in managing health care costs, and expanded benefits. We believe this offer reflects UC’s commitment to stability and opportunity for UPTE-represented staff.”
The proposal also addresses general wage growth for all members and specific market pressures in high-demand roles, ensuring fair and competitive compensation supporting recruitment, retention and long-term career advancement. Despite considerable financial constraints, the University remains committed to balancing fair employee compensation with long-term economic sustainability for students, patients, and taxpayers.
Highlights of UC’s comprehensive LBFO include:
Competitive Wage Increases Across Four Years
UC’s Last, Best and Final Offer provides meaningful across-the-board raises, step increases, and targeted adjustments to ensure fair and competitive pay for UPTE-represented employees:
- Year 1: 5% (or adjustment to $25/hour minimum wage, whichever is greater)
- Year 2: 4%
- Year 3: 3%
- Year 4: 3%
At Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), wage increases will follow merit rules, with:
- Year 1: 6%
- Year 2: 5%
- Year 3: 4%
Market-Based Adjustments: More Steps, Fairer Pay
UC has proposed to raise and restructure pay steps across multiple job titles, eliminating lower steps, adding steps at the top and applying percentage increases to ensure fairer pay scales. These changes mean higher earning potential, stronger career progression, and recognition of the vital work UPTE-represented UC employees perform. In addition, employees will receive annual step increases to support career growth (each roughly equivalent to a 2% wage increase):
- HX employees: January 2025, 2026, 2027, and 2028
- RX/TX employees: January 2025, 2026, and 2028
Real Savings on Health Care Premiums for Lower-Paid Employees
- For 2025, Pay Band 1 employees who select Kaiser Permanente or UC Blue & Gold plans will receive a $125 monthly credit toward their premium contributions; employees in Pay Band 2 choosing these same plans will receive a $100 monthly credit.
- For 2026-2028, Pay Band 1 employees would receive $100 monthly credit, while Pay Band 2 employees would receive $75 monthly credit.
- In cases where the credit eliminates the monthly contribution, employees will owe nothing.
Strengthened Job Security and Safety
- Restored employee choice between severance or preferential rehire and recall in the event of layoffs.
- Timely ergonomic evaluations and improved access to safety equipment.
- Continued commitment to healthy and compliant work environments.
Modernized Labor Practices
- Clearer Reclassification Rules: Establish criteria, timelines, and appeal processes for reclassification requests, with retroactive pay back to the submission date.
- Defined Career Pathways: Clarify promotion vs. transfer, how vacancies are filled, and processes when applicants are equally qualified.
- Fair Access: Allow UC to limit some postings to internal applicants while ensuring transparent review standards.
Stronger Leave Protections and Expanded Benefits for Members
- Update Family Medical Leave provisions to align with state and federal changes: expand definitions, clarify leave duration, add coverage for bone marrow/organ donation, reproductive loss, care for adult children, and designated persons.
- Ensure employee protections: allow continued insurance coverage if self-paid, recognize enhanced benefits under law, and add Family and Job Care Benefits (FJCB) language for applicability across leaves.
- Strengthen sick leave rights by expanding eligibility to per diems, ensuring credit for all appointment types, clarifying protected uses and allowing up to 30 days per year with clear verification guidelines.
Additional Employee Support
- December 24 and 31 added as major holidays.
- New Physician Assistant 3 classification, with pay scale alignment to Nurse Practitioners and step placement tied to professional experience.
- Formation of a joint UC-UPTE committee to explore a childcare leave provision.
UC’s LBFO follows a state-facilitated factfinding report in which a mutually agreed upon neutral third party supported UC on most unresolved issues—favoring UC proposals on 15 of 37 topics, compared to three for UPTE—and while the report endorsed wage increases consistent with UC’s prior offer, UC went further by making additional increased wage offers.
Despite this strong proposal, UC continues to navigate significant financial challenges driven by ongoing uncertainty in both state and federal funding. With state budgets under strain and federal research and health care dollars subject to shifting priorities, the University must balance its commitment to fair compensation with its responsibility to safeguard long-term financial stability for students, patients, and the communities it serves.
UC continues to welcome dialogue with UPTE and remains hopeful the union will engage constructively with this generous package offer. If accepted, the contract would expire Nov. 30, 2028.
A fact sheet about the LBFO is available here.