Much anticipated response to AFT salary, workload proposal
District non-response to AFT salary, workload proposal angers AFT bargaining team, prompts call for escalating member action
On Wednesday, April 4, the District responded to the Union’s detailed, exhaustively researched salary and workload proposal, presented on March 14, 2018. What our bargaining team and rank-and-file members in attendance heard was disappointing and insulting. The District said that it could not give a specific counter-proposal, and that for 2018/19, it would only be able to provide salary improvement equivalent to the 2.51% State COLA proposed by the Governor plus, perhaps, “a little more.” For the second and third years of the agreement, the District suggested salary re-openers, with no commitment, and no specifics.
Vice President Jenny Worley, speaking on behalf our Union, expressed outrage at the negligible commitment the District was willing to make to bring faculty salaries above the Bay Ten median. “We committed together to reach a tentative agreement by April 19—only two weeks from now! This response is profoundly inadequate, and an insult to our members.”
Doug Orr, presenting for the Union, demonstrated graphically exactly what little impact a 2.51% increase would make toward the mutually agreed-upon goal of these negotiations — bringing salaries above the Bay-Ten College median.
AFT 2121 President Tim Killikelly told the District that we would be letting our members know about their non-response and failure to follow through on the promises they have been making to our Bargaining Team. For five months our AFT 2121 Team have been engaged in good-faith negotiations with District Administration. We expect them to follow through and present us with a real counter-proposal.
MEMBER ACTION NEEDED:
Together we are strong. Clearly, the administration is not taking faculty seriously, so we need every union member to attend at least ONE of the following actions to show them that we mean business and that our members will not be ignored! RSVP to organizer Athena Waid (awaid@aft2121.org, 406-531-0503). Let’s show the District that we do expect them to follow through!
- Wednesday, April 11, Open Negotiations 1:30pm, MUB 238. Fill the room so the very next thing the District sees after this non-response is a room full of serious and fully engaged faculty ready to hold them accountable. Wear your AFT 2121 t-shirt and help us show the administration that this matters to us, that we are united, and that we demand better.
- Thursday, April 26, Board of Trustees meeting in MUB 140, 3:30pm: Teach-in on how our proposal will help to protect educational quality and student learning conditions. 4:00pm: Public Comment to the Board of Trustees.
- Wednesday, May 2, 12:00 noon: Rally at Ram Plaza, Ocean campus, 12:45 march to MUB for negotiations.
Can’t attend those actions? - Show your solidarity every Wednesday (or any day!) during negotiations until we get a contract! Wear your AFT t-shirt or button and for those who are able we ask that you come together in unity on Wednesdays at 1pm wearing your AFT-2121 t-shirts or buttons to take a photo. Send it us and we will share it on social media, our website, and in our e-news blasts. This will continue lifting up and amplifying the strength we build by standing together. Please send photos to to organizer Athena Waid (awaid@aft2121.org).
- Re-commit to our Union this semester by signing our new membership form — with its loud, proud commitment to “stick with our union” for a full calendar year.
If you need a t-shirt, button, or membership form contact staff member Wendy Leung (wleung@aft2121.org, 415-585-2121).
(Picture) Before bargaining began this week some of our AFT 2121 Bargaining Team members and a member were showing off their AFT 2121 t-shirts for the kick-off or Wednesday t-shirt days.
Contact AFT 2121 at 415-585-2121 or visit us online at aft2121.org. Follow us on Facebook.
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