The Brief

The union that represents the University of California’s academic workers launched the first in a series of strikes May 20 — a move that could deal a blow to campus operations with finals imminent.

UAW 4811 members work at all 10 of the system’s campuses. In mid-May, workers at UC Santa Cruz began the first “stand up” strike. They were soon followed by workers at UCLA and UC Davis. On June 3, UC Santa Barbara and UC San Diego joined in as well, with UC Irvine joining June 5. Other campuses stand at the ready.

The union has filed multiple unfair labor practice charges against UC, arguing that the system violated workers’ rights when deploying police to dismantle encampments formed in protest of Israel's war effort in Gaza.

Meanwhile, UC also filed its own unfair labor practice charge and asked the state’s Public Employment Relations Board to put an end to the strike. Allowing it to continue, UC said in a press release, “will cause the University and its students irreparable harm.” Members of the union teach, research, and grade, meaning that work will be getting done at fewer and fewer campuses. The academic year ends in mid-June.

The system also asserts that the work stoppages are illegal, pointing to “no strike” clauses in the union contracts.

But some labor law experts say those “no strike” clauses are not so cut-and-dried.

When do employees have a right to strike?

That depends on where they live and where they work, said Jay Smith, a lecturer at USC’s law school and an attorney who’s represented labor unions throughout the country for nearly four decades.

If an employee works in the private sector, he said, their right to strike “is protected and governed by federal law exclusively, and any state attempts to govern that are preempted.”

In contrast, if someone works in the public sector — like the academic workers at the University of California — “all labor relations, including the right to strike, are governed by state law, and sometimes by local law,” Smith added.

“Some states prohibit all public sector employees from striking,” he said. In those states, public employees risk getting fined, fired, or jailed for walking off the job. In the past 10 years, for instance, bus drivers in Mississippi and teachers in West Virginia took these risks to demand higher wages.

What are 'no strike' clauses?

“No strike” clauses are worked into contracts to maintain uninterrupted operations. They also compel unions and employers to settle disputes through arbitration or mediation.

In the private sector, almost all contracts between unions and their employers have “no strike” clauses during the length of the contract, Smith said.

Typically, unions go on strike “only when the contract has expired or [when it’s] been terminated, and they're usually striking in favor of getting a better contract from the employer. But they’re doing so at a time when there is no contract in effect,” he added.

How literal is a 'no strike' clause?

There is some wiggle room. In 1956, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Mastro Plastics Corp. v. NLRB. From the court’s opinion:

Basically, Smith said, the court “decided that, for employees in the private sector, if their strike is significantly motivated by an employer's commission of serious unfair labor practices, the ‘no strike’ clause doesn't apply — even if there is a contract in effect.”

What do protests over Gaza have to do with working conditions?

The union says employees are demanding workplace-related changes, including the right to opt out of military-funded research. The union also says Palestinian and Muslim students have experienced a hostile workplace.

The union therefore takes issue with the arrest, suspension, and discipline of members who participated in demonstrations at UCLA, UC San Diego, and UC Irvine. The union alleges that UC retaliated against employees for engaging in actions related to working conditions.

Who determines whether the UC strikes are legal?

The California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) enforces collective bargaining laws for the state’s public sector employees. And “California laws and [PERB] typically borrow extensively from both the statute and the legal precedence that exist in the private sector under the federal law,” Smith said — for example, that Supreme Court case.

After reviewing the UC’s press statement, Smith said the system is “quoting the literal terms of the ‘no strike’ clause. And if you just look at the no strike clause, it certainly looks, on the face of it, like the University of California is correct and the UAW is wrong — but that's only if you don't understand this additional issue.”

What's been decided so far?

J. Felix De La Torre, general counsel for PERB, said the agency has offered mediation to UC and the union. On May 23, PERB announced it would not pursue the injunction to stop the strikes, saying UC "has not established that injunctive relief is 'just and proper’” under the standard set by state law. PERB denied another request for an injunction on June 3.

What happens to union members if the strikes are illegal?

“If PERB seeks an injunction and a judge issues the injunction,” Smith said, union members would be obligated to comply. If they defied it, “a whole cascade of bad things could happen to them,” including fines and being “put in handcuffs for contempt of court.”

In an email, De La Torre also told LAist that PERB hasn’t reached a decision on UAW 4811’s unfair labor practice charges.

De La Torre also noted that “PERB has not determined that UAW’s strike is unlawful.” That’s still being determined, and the process could take months.

Eggs from the first confirmed sea turtle nests found on the U.S. West Coast have hatched.

"We are excited to share that some of the olive ridley sea turtle eggs from Seal Beach successfully hatched after a 58-day incubation period," said the Aquarium of the Pacific in a social media post.

The Long Beach-based aquarium has been keeping watch over 204 Olive Ridley Sea Turtle eggs, laid on Seal Beach and Huntington Beach in September.

The aquarium said the hatchlings were released early this morning in a coastal area with little light and human disturbances.

Baby turtles, the aquarium said, go through a “frenzy period” after hatching, where they swim nonstop for up to two days

The eggs came from the first confirmed sea turtle nests found on the U.S. West Coast. Scientists say unusually warming water tied to El Niño likely drew the rare turtles to the Southern California coast.

A couple of decades ago, a friend in New York told me about something happening that was kinda underground and just getting traction. It was called “The Moth.” People took turns telling a true, personal story, with no notes, named after the Southern tradition of sitting on front porches and sharing spellbinding tales — with moths flying mesmerized around the porchlight.

It sounded amazing. And terrifying. I filed it under the same list as bungee jumping — no doubt exhilarating but something I’d never do — and got on with my life. Over the years, as it grew bigger and bigger, I went to several Moth events in different cities, and was always so impressed with the storytellers — and equally adamant I’d never do it.

Cut to this September, when a message went out to all the staff at LAist. We’re a media sponsor of The Moth, and an event, a open mike StorySLAM, was coming up in Silver Lake. There were a few tickets available. Did anyone want one? The theme was "Divas." Sure, I thought. I’d go watch. It's always fun.

Nagging thought

As the days went by, the same thought kept nagging at me. How about getting on stage yourself? No, I thought. Too risky. But this time there was another thought, even more vehement. Why are you being held hostage by fear? Life is too short. If you want to do something, you just have to do it. And this opportunity has just fallen into your lap.

So when the day came, I went to the event, and put my name in the hat. Would I be picked? I sat there with sweaty palms as the show started and people came up tell their own funny, moving, poignant stories.

Finally, near the end of the show, my name was called out. Gulp. I walked on stage to the mic, and began telling my story.

“Some years ago I was a BBC radio producer. A show host and I were at Albuquerque airport, on our way to Los Alamos to do interviews about the Manhattan project. But when we got to the gate, it was closed. They’d boarded the plane 15 minutes early. We couldn't believe it. There was only one plane per day and we'd flown in from London and were on a tight schedule. What should we do?”

Holding their breath

It was a strange experience, simultaneously storytelling while looking at the audience and scanning for their reactions. They seemed to be enjoying themselves.... and were holding their breath, waiting to see what came next.

“I could see the plane on the tarmac, one of those regional planes with propellers, on the other side of an alarmed emergency exit door. So I decided, in the heat of the moment, to push it open, and started dashing across the tarmac, yelling for the host to follow me. Security men began running towards me from every direction as the alarm blared loudly.”

The audience was laughing with delight and disbelief, and I was laughing, too, at the recollection. What on earth had made me do that? Ah, my young, impulsive, determined self. Just as well it wasn’t today, post 9/11. I’d be dead.

“As I reached the plane, the security men were shouting 'What are you doing? You can’t run onto the tarmac!' That’s when the diva part came in. I drew myself up to my full 5’ 2” and said, determinedly, 'No, YOU were the ones who boarded the plane early. We did everything right! We have our tickets, we have interviews to do and we are going to get on this plane.'"

The security men looked at each other, unsure what to do. Maybe it was the British accent, or not being used to a woman giving them a dressing down. But one of them shrugged, moved out of the way, and they let us get on the plane. "Hurray! And we made it to Los Alamos, in time to do our interviews. Thank you.”

The audience went crazy, clapping and whooping. I was standing there grinning stupidly. I couldn’t believe I’d done it.

Yes, the story went down well. And the audience hadn't eaten me alive. But there was something bigger, something even more satisfying in my reaction. I’d had made myself do something I was scared of. I'd faced my demons.... and survived.

A lesson for us all.

If you happen to see 600 people snaking down 14.3 miles of Santa Monica Boulevard (and then some) on Saturday, Nov. 21 — their sole purpose is just to … walk.

“For years people were asking us, ‘What are you doing?’” said Michael Schneider, founder of the Great Los Angeles Walk.

These strolls are maximalist in nature, usually covering the entire length of a given thoroughfare. Sunset Boulevard. Melrose Avenue. Ventura Boulevard.

The inaugural Great L.A. Walk in 2006 along Wilshire Boulevard.

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How the walk began 

The pre-Thanksgiving tradition started in 2006 with Wilshire Boulevard. Schneider, who had reached the milestone of living in L.A. for a decade, was inspired by a book about the street’s history to walk its entire 15.8 miles on foot. He asked others to join on his blog Franklin Avenue.

About two dozen people showed up. That day, they popped into storefronts, stopped by restaurants, sneaked into the Park Plaza Hotel near MacArthur Park and shot up to the roof. “That kind of unearthed a whole new side of Los Angeles as we walked down Wilshire,” he said.

By the time the trek reached the ocean, folks were asking Schneider about next year. Now, it's always on the Saturday before Thanksgiving.

“I inadvertently turned it into an annual tradition,” he said.

The 2016 edition of Great L.A. Walk along Pico Boulevard.

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Courtesy Great Los Angeles Walk

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The 2007 installment was Pico Boulevard — with restaurant recommendations along the route handpicked by the late Pulitzer-winning food critic Jonathan Gold.

Eventually, Schneider included themed walks. March of Los Pobladores — which retraces the final leg of the 1781 journey taken by the original founders of L.A. — from the San Gabriel Mission to downtown. And USC to UCLA when the rivals faced off on game day.

This year’s route: Route 66 

This year's theme is Route 66.

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Google map screengrab

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This year’s focus is Route 66, marking the centennial of the iconic road. Saturday's walk will start in Echo Park, then go the whole way down Santa Monica Boulevard and end at the pier, totaling about 16 miles.

“You see so many different versions of Los Angeles,” he said.

Michael Schneider, founder of the Great L.A. Walk, at last year's trot along Wilshire Boulevard.

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Courtesy Great Los Angeles Walk

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Celebrity sightings and a marquee shout-out 

One year, he said, the group walked by Magic Johnson.

“He waved at us," Schneider said. "Probably was wondering why [there were] hundreds of people walking past where he was."

As many as 600 people now join the walk, he said. As the number grows, so too has its legend.

“Now we find a lot of people who know who we are,” he said. “You hear people say, ‘Hey, it's the Great L.A. Walk.”

Updated November 13, 2026 at 20:38 PM ET

The nationwide ground stop that paralyzed the U.S. aviation system on Friday has ended, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

The rare stop, which lasted about four hours, grounded thousands of flights at all U.S. airports in one of the biggest disruptions of the nation's air travel system since the September 11th attacks. 

In a Friday night news conference, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that air traffic control facilities had experienced "intermittent" outages of their radar and communications systems beginning earlier in the afternoon. Duffy blamed outdated technology for the failures. 

"We have old switches, old routers. We use 1980s little copper lines. It's an old system that went down and went down everywhere. It got overloaded," he said.

But when pressed by reporters on exactly why those systems would become overwhelmed on an otherwise normal travel day, Duffy did not have a ready answer. 

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin joined Duffy in the White House briefing room and said there was no evidence the issue was due to an attack.

"We have seen zero evidence this is a cyber attack," he said.

A flight board showing delayed flights is pictured at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Friday.

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As of 9 p.m. ET, more than 8,000 flights had been delayed Friday and 7,000 had been canceled in the U.S., according to FlightAware, a flight tracking site. The turmoil comes on the heels of nearly 7,000 flight delays on Thursday.

The FAA said the issue affected Air Route Traffic Control Centers — the regional air traffic control centers across the country that handle high-altitude traffic.

FAA leaders did not brief the media at the White House press conference, and did not provide any further detail on the communication outages that led to the ground stop.

This was only the second nationwide ground stop since September 11, 2001. The U.S. last issued a ground stop of this scale in 2023, when all U.S. airports were shut down due to an outage in the NOTAM (Notice to Air Missions) system, which alerts pilots and airports of real-time hazards.

That outage prompted fears of a cyberattack, but the FAA later determined the issue was caused when contract workers inadvertently deleted critical files.

Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) released a statement late Friday evening calling for a "prompt, penetrating investigation" into the causes of Friday's ground stop.

"A widespread communication outage of this scale is highly alarming — a clear danger to national security, as well as safe, convenient travel close to the holidays. The Department of Transportation owes Americans credible, accurate action and factual disclosure," the statement read.

The FAA has recently begun rolling out an AI-enhanced software tool known as the SMART system as part of its ambitious overhaul of the nation's air traffic control system. But Air Space Intelligence, the company that makes the tool, quickly dismissed speculation that its product could be connected to the flight disruptions.

"The current ground stop is not based on or a result of the SMART system, any product of ASI or our integration with FAA and ATC," the company said on social media.

Passengers stranded

The nationwide ground stop caused chaos in airports and headaches for travelers — many of whom are already too familiar with flight delays and cancellations during the holiday season.

At the Friday night press conference, Duffy said flights would resume but would take time to clear.

At Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, Regina Harling said she waited hours — long past when her flight was supposed to depart — before she learned of the nationwide grounding by checking the news on her phone. 

"There's still a sign right in front of me that says we're boarding in 16 minutes," she said Friday afternoon. 

An airline worker shows people how to apply for a refund at LaGuardia airport on Friday.

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Harling needed to travel last minute to San Diego for a family emergency. Stuck at the airport, she said she was thinking about how soon she could make it to her family, but she's not optimistic.

"I was just thinking to myself that it always feels like it's getting harder to travel than it used to be," she said.

At Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Giliann Karon was on board a plane when the ground stop was ordered. Karon said she had already experienced a flight delay the day before due to bad weather in New York City, where she is heading.

"It's just kind of like, 'Oh, of course this is happening,'" she said.

Deepa Shivaram contributed to this report.

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