March-April 2022 Advocate: Negotiations Update

Negotiations update

As initial proposals for a new faculty contract are “sunshined,” AFT asks members to complete “Count On Me” cards

by Marianne Kaletzky, AFT 1493 Executive Secretary and Negotiations Team Member

Although we have not yet sat down for our first negotiating session, the process of bargaining our next faculty contract is now underway. On February 23, the Board of Trustees officially received our initial proposals for the next contract, which will cover July 2022-June 2025. These proposals include:

  • A fairer salary formula than the one that gave us a .52% raise for this year
  • Clear policies around class cancellations
  • Paid parental leave
  • Increased District contribution to full-time health benefits
  • Part-time pay parity (pay PT faculty at least 85% of what FT faculty make for the same amount of work)
  • Better healthcare options for part-timers
  • Guarantee that faculty can do a certain percentage of work remotely
  • Stronger part-timer appointment rights
  • Clear, expedient disability accommodation process
  • Contractual protection for academic freedom
  • Contractual provisions covering distance education
  • Clear policies on when faculty may be assigned to teach dual enrollment classes

Click here to view AFT’s full contract proposals

At their next meeting on March 23, the Board will hold a public hearing on AFT’s initial proposals and theirs (a process called “sunshining,” which is legally required for collective bargaining with public employees). Once the sunshining process is complete, negotiations for the new contract can begin.

To gain a deeper understanding of faculty priorities and gauge member strength, our Contract Action Team (CAT) is distributing digital and paper Count On Me cards, which ask faculty to rank their top three demands from the above list and let us know which actions they are willing to take to win those demands. You may be hearing from a CAT colleague asking you to complete a Count On Me card, or you can go ahead and complete a card today using this link: https://bit.ly/3J1VjjG

(Click here to read more about the CAT and upcoming actions in the campaign to win a stronger contract.)

If you have questions about how the negotiations process works, please reach out to Marianne Kaletzky or your campus AFT Chapter Chairs.