Thousands of California scientists strike over stalled contract talks

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Thousands of scientists who work for California have begun a three-day strike over lack of progress on contract talks. Picketing began Wednesday in Sacramento. It’s the first walkout by a state civil service union since those unions were granted collective bargaining rights in 1977. Members of the California Association of Professional Scientists have been working without a contract since 2020. They’re demanding more pay. They say scientists are drastically underpaid compared to other state workers who do similar work. The California Department of Human Resources says it is disappointed by the strike and that the state continues to bargain “in good faith.”