BLOOMSBURG — On the first day of a historic faculty strike at Bloomsburg University, picketers greeted the afternoon with a brass band playing pep-rally-style on the steps of Carver Hall.

About 100 students had joined faculty for the first of two planned rallies, echoing back strike chants as Bill Hudon, a professor of history, bellowed into a bullhorn — “We’re not making widgets, we’re growing possibilities!” — and strutted up and down the sidewalk, leading chants of “2-4-6-8 – Come on PASSHE negotiate!”

Here's video from today's rally:

It was still dark out when students and faculty began their march at the iconic building Wednesday morning, with about 22 people carrying signs before 7 a.m.

Dave Zienkiewicz, 19, a sophomore from Ringtown majoring in Secondary Education, held a handmade sign with a cartoon cow’s head and the slogan “I’m a student not a ca$h cow.” He was moved to picket because he hopes to one day teach at the college level, he said.

Meanwhile, some of his classmates followed university orders to continue with business as usual, in spite of the majority of faculty walking off the job.

Five students arrived at a German language course at 8 a.m. to find the lights out and the room empty, said Marina Lebedana, a 20-year-old exchange student from Russia. “We stayed five minutes and left,” Lebedana said, but she didn’t mind the disruption to her regular schedule.

She could use the extra time for additional studying, she said, stretching out on a bench in the quad to read.

Terrance Blanton, 21, a criminal justice major from Williamsport, was the only student to show for his 8 a.m. education course, save for the graduate assistant, he said. “I thought someone would be there to take attendance, at least,” he said. He plans to keep going every day, even if there’s no one there no make a note of it.

Faculty who have walked off the job are not allowed to step foot on campus during the strike, and they were told their payroll would be frozen, and they would be removed from the university health plan immediately.

“I don’t have health benefits right now, so I have to be careful not to break anything,” said Terry Riley, the local union spokesman.

At Town Park
Beneath the John Fetterolf Pavilion in Town Park, Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties officials spent the morning organizing unionized professors in a staging area, with boxes of buttons and a thick pile of signs that just needed to be threaded with cord and slung around a striking faculty member’s neck.

A sign on a picnic table reminded them “Be Nice.” Nearby, Professor Wendy Lynne Lee snapped photos. “This is history in the making,” she said.

It was also a place to refuel with coffee, donuts and water, or to use a public restroom, said Eric Hawrelak, a professor helping with mobilization. Some of the snacks were provided by students and the AFSCME union, to which most of the non-faculty unionized staff on campus belong. It was a show of support, since their contract explicitly won’t allow them to go on a sympathy strike, said Hawrelak, whose wife is part of the support staff.

The union is planning to picket from 7:30 a.m. until 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, until a new pact is reached, Hawrelak said, stationing faculty at five locations on the streets near campus entrances.

By noon, he had heard of about 10 faculty members who had crossed the picket line to teach their classes, he said.

But the first day of striking seemed to be going according to plan. “I’ve been, honestly, very delighted,” he said. “It’s easy to cast a vote. It’s easy to put your name on a list. But then to really show up when push comes to shove” took the most effort.

Some temporary faculty members expressed concern that showing up would also put their jobs in jeopardy down the line. Many were given behind-the-scenes jobs to help with the strike, Hawrelak said, like driving shuttles between the staging area and the strike locations.

Negotiation breakdown
A State System press release sent out as negotiations broke down late Tuesday evening said the contract dispute had come down to salary and healthcare packages after many other contentious points — like increasing the workload of adjunct faculty while keeping their pay stagnant — were rescinded.

PASSHE officials have contended that proposed healthcare changes, proposed in accord with an average 12 percent pay raise for tenured faculty over three years, will put faculty in line with the same benefits other unionized campus workers have already agreed to and help the universities save some money.

“They say it’s the same as others have gotten, but they forced it down their throat,” Markell said.

A good healthcare and benefits package can make the difference in attracting and retaining high-quality staff, he added. “We haven’t been able to hire people... It’s the same search over and over again.”

Jack Rude, an accounting professor, is teaching six classes because of the staffing shortage, he said. A normal full-time courseload is four sections per semester, although professors get an extra stipend to take on additional courses.

“This is not a job where it’s 9-5,” he said. “Even when I go to Burger King and have breakfast, I’m thinking about what I want to do in classes.”

The extra classes, co-authoring two papers, advising students and other duties have added up to regular 50-60 hour workweeks, he said.

“You can check with my wife. I have to introduce myself when I go home,” he joked.

Details scarce
Details from inside the negotiating room remained scant throughout the day, and students and faculty alike were unclear on the details of the proposal currently on the table.

Thomas Weber, 19, a sophomore political science and communications major from Easton, couldn’t sleep in the hours before the strike was officially called early Wednesday.

The turmoil around contract negotiations and proposals from the state have “devalued” his education, he says. Now he’s considering transferring to Temple, an irony that isn’t lost on him as the ramifications of a 1990 Temple University strike have recently been touted as a cautionary tale of striking. Enrollment there dropped after some students declined to return after the strike had ended and applications decreased the next year.

We'll have more on the strike throughout the day. Some images from the picket so far: