The three day rolling strike by state scientists comes after more than three years of negotiations over pay.
"What we do is we protect the natural environment," said Noa Rishe, who's been on the picket line at the Ventura Government Building.
She says it was a tough decision to take.
"Most of us scientists that work for the state, I mean, we're not here necessarily for the pay, right? We're here because we love and we care about what we do," she told KCLU.
"Even going on strike for these two days was like a personally very difficult decision for a lot of us. I think scientists need to be more valued. I think that'll help future generations of scientists to continue in this career path, which is very important for protection of the environment," she said.
"I feel like we've just been left behind," she said.
