THE UST Faculty Union (USTFU) will formalize on March 14 the declaration of a deadlock in negotiations with the UST administration over a new salary and benefits deal, and file a strike notice on March 24, after the majority of union members voted against UST’s “final” offer.
A total of 680 faculty members voted “no” on the Google Forms survey conducted by the USTFU from March 10 to 11, signaling both their rejection of the administration’s offer for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and their support for declaring a deadlock in talks.
UST’s final offer included an increase in medical benefits to P150,000 a year from P100,000 and a critical illness benefit of P200,000. The latter benefit would have been increased to P300,000 if the union membership agreed to a P17-million “rank upgrade” budget.
The P17-million rank upgrade proposal, down from the initial P26 million sought by the union, includes a controversial P1.5-million allocation for a restructuring of salaries that was rejected by Senior High School (SHS) faculty, who said they “deserved better.”
READ: UST admin: Union panel refused allocation for SHS faculty salary restructuring
The union wanted the P26 million shouldered by UST, but settled for P17 million after the management insisted on taking the amount from the 70% mandatory share of employees from yearly tuition increases that faculty negotiators wanted to keep intact.
The “no” votes met the simple majority threshold, given the roster of 1,343 eligible voters consisting of tenured and probationary faculty members.
A total of 400 faculty members voted in favor of UST’s final offer — which would have paved the way for the ratification of the CBA — while 113 votes were deemed invalid by designated union vote counters.
EXPLAINER: What happens when collective bargaining talks end up in a deadlock?
In a message to members shortly after the release of the vote count on March 12, USTFU President Emerito Gonzales said the deadlock would be formalized in a March 14 meeting with the UST management panel.
“The General Membership has spoken. It is my sworn duty as union president and chairperson of the USTFU CBA panel to honor my commitment to the union members whom I owe allegiance to,” Gonzales said.
“On Friday, March 14, 2025, we the USTFU CBA Panel will meet with the management to FORMALLY DECLARE A DEADLOCK IN OUR NEGOTIATIONS.”
Gonzales urged faculty members to show solidarity as the CBA process reaches a critical stage.
“There will be a series of activities and we expect that the general membership will participate and show their solidarity with us as we carve our path towards better benefits, stronger union, and meaningful change in our beloved University,” he said.
The deadlock comes after a year of negotiations for the 2021-2026 CBA, which covers faculty salaries, working hours, benefits, and other terms and conditions of work.
This will mark the third time in UST history that faculty CBA negotiations have reached a deadlock.
What happens next?
A deadlock arises when CBA negotiations reach an impasse due to unresolved issues.
This may result in outcomes such as filing a notice of strike with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), mediation or arbitration, or a return to negotiations for further discussion.
The USTFU will file a notice of strike with the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) on March 24. It initially sought to submit the notice on March 17, but negotiation ground rules set a “cooling off” period of five working days after the declaration of a deadlock.
During this period, “the panels may offer options to resolve the issue.”
A deadlock brings two “huge risks of work stoppage,” said Roderick Almeyda, the executive labor arbiter of the National Labor Relations Commission Region 3, in an interview with the Varsitarian.
It may lead to the declaration of a strike, when faculty members refuse to work as a form of protest, or a lockout, when employers temporarily refuse to give their employees work.
USTFU’s legal adviser, lawyer General Du, said the deadlock would place political pressure on the UST administration.
“There are only two na kinatatakutan lagi ng mga corporations in my experience as a labor leader and a union leader: first is if they lose money, and second is if they lose face,” Du said during the March 10 general assembly called by USTFU prior to the vote.
“And that’s the threat [posed] by a deadlock — for them to lose face.”
The deadlock would also enable the NCMB to step in and intervene to resolve remaining disputes concerning the CBA, which outlines salaries and other employment terms and conditions.
For a strike to happen, it must first be voted upon by a majority of USTFU members through a meeting or referendum. A formal request must also be filed with the NCMB regional branch at least 24 hours before the scheduled vote.
UST’s faculty CBA does not have a no-strike clause.
If a strike happens, the government has another trump card: the Labor Code allows the Secretary of Labor to “assume jurisdiction” over the labor dispute in industries considered “indispensable to the national interest.” The labor chief will then make a final decision on the salaries and benefits package, often ruling in favor of workers.
This happened in UST during the 1989 strike that resulted in the dismissal of 16 union officials, with Labor Secretary Ruben Torres eventually producing a compromise CBA.
The deadlock in CBA negotiations comes at a critical time in UST as the administration has received a show-cause order from the Commission on Higher Education, directing it to explain its compliance with the distribution of teachers’ 70% share in tuition increases. Amanda Luella A. Rivera
