America’s largest public university system could come to a standstill if negotiations fall through before April of this year.

The California Faculty Association’s board of directors voted Friday to set strike dates for April 13 to 15, 18 and 19. According to President Jennifer Eagan, all 26,000 plus union members will go on strike and picket if the five percent salary increase for 2015-2016 is not met. The CSU’s most recent offer for salary increase to the union was two percent in their budget.

According to CSUEB CFA Chapter President Nicholas Baham, “We are still in the fact finding phase. If a deal has not been reached by the time the fact-finding report is issued we will be legally authorized to strike.”

The strike would not only include instructors, it would also include counselors, librarians and coaches. This is the second year of a three year contract for union members that includes a 1.6 percent increase in pay system wide.

Baham referred to a fact finding panel provided by the union that is scheduled to release its findings in March, however, no matter what the panel finds the union is still authorized to strike.

This would be just the second system wide strike for the CSU system and the first since the 1980s. However, in 2011, CSUEB and CSU Dominguez Hills staged a one day work stoppage and strike to protest faculty and staff wages.

The nearly 460,000 students that attend the 23 campus system would have to deal with cancelled classes and office hours by instructors to walk picket lines, according to Eagan.

On Nov. 4, 2015 union members voted 95 percent in favor of a strike authorization. Staff and faculty from all 23 CSU campuses then attended a march and rally at the CSU Chancellor’s Office in Long Beach on Nov. 17, 2015. In October CSU Director of Public Affairs Toni Molle said, “Compensation remains a top priority,” for the CSU system.

“Frankly if we don’t do this, I’m going to tell you something,” Baham said. “The students are going to take back the campus. The CSU is the people’s campus and the students know what’s up.”