An additional 3 percent cut from the University of California’s (UC) budget causes an outpouring of protests from faculty, teachers, and students at many UCs, including UC Berkeley and UCLA.

The system wide strike began early in the morning. Most classes either spent the lecture time discussing the strike or classes were all together canceled.

The 3 percent cut will result in reductions in the income of workers and an astonishing 50 percent increase in student fees for UC students by the end of the academic year.

According to UCLA’s Registrars Office, fees for Fall 2009 quarter, which includes “Educational Fees”-read: tuition-calculate to $3,049.71 for In-State Undergraduates.

With a 50 percent increase, that would mean $18,298.26 yearly.

One of the goals of the protests was to ensure the protection of UC workers who make less than $40,000 a year.

Those who earn less than $40,000 a year must be insulated from the cuts. This salary for a primary income earner in a small family is only an illness away from catastrophe.

UC President Mark G. Yudof needs to cut funding in other areas of the system before targeting the staff. Housing costs should instead increase. The UC can also reduce the budget for community activities.

Both Yudof and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger tend to shift the costs of a public university onto the students. Education must be valued. It is the one investment that is guaranteed to reap benefits for both the state and the individual. This is the last thing the state government should slash.

Also, Yudof does not comprehend that if tuition costs are high, and financial aid is reduced, students will head straight for community colleges which are already under financial pressure and do not offer the same services as four-year institutions.

It is unjustifiable to hurt so many teachers, staff, and students who truly make the UC system what it is today.