The Asociación de Empleados Universitarios accepted to cease in their forceful occupation of the financial, registration and academic coordination offices of the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD), the largest in the Dominican Republic. Union spokesmen said they would not reinitiate their work unless an agreement was reached with university authorities. President of the union, Fausto Herrera Catalino, made the announcement following mediation efforts of Professor José Silié Gatón. The union has paralyzed the university since 12 February, impeding the beginning of classes. This affects nearly 100,000 students. The union has now reduced its demands for an increase in salary from 20 to 8%, although it says the remaining 12% would have to be incorporated in the 1999 budget of the state university. The union says that if this is accepted, the employees would be back at work on Monday, 23 March. The union also demands that the 13 union members that were expulsed be reintegrated and that the university housing plan to benefit employees commence this year. The university loses an estimated RD$2 milllion every day of the strike.
