Copyright Mechanicsburg Patriot News
HACC’s faculty union is planning to go back on strike on Wednesday, according to a press release from the college’s education association. Faculty plans to picket that day from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at HACC’s Lancaster campus at 1641 Old Philadelphia Pike, the Monday release said. The union and the college will meet to negotiate at 5 p.m. Tuesday evening via Zoom. The strike follows a Nov. 5 negotiation that lasted 12 minutes and produced no progress. Union leaders say the college has refused to compromise on workload, pay, and faculty input in academic decisions. Following the last negotiation, HACC said it “remains committed to reaching a fair and fiscally responsible contract,” and emphasized that it hoped to resume negotiations soon. The faculty union said more than 200 faculty members, students and members of the community picketed at HACC’s Harrisburg campus last week. Faculty unionized in 2022 but have yet to secure a contract. The union was on strike for two days last week before returning to class for renewed talks. The union represents about 250 active members covering 750 teaching positions across HACC’s campuses, serving more than 12,000 students. The press release said faculty have not received a wage increase since 2022-23, while all other college staff have received at least 3 percent increases for each of the three academic years. The Harrisburg Area Community College Education Association (HACCEA) is an affiliate of the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) representing faculty members at HACC campuses in Adams, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, and York counties.
