Why do faculty need raises? 

A brief financial analysis of SMCCCD revenues and faculty compensation

By Rika Yonemura-Fabian (Sociology, Skyline College, AFT Co-President)

In the bargaining survey AFT conducted in November, 90% of all responses rated compensation as a “very important” negotiation item, with 9% rating it as “somewhat important.” Obviously money is the top priority for the majority of members because we deserve the reward for the hard work we do. In this article, I want to demonstrate to our members why we need significant raises, and the District owes that to us as faculty.

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Our District has enjoyed steadily increasing revenues

Let’s start with the obvious! SMCCCD funds have increased very significantly in the past decade. In fact, SMCCCD unrestricted fund revenues increased by 88% between 2015 and 2024. The unrestricted fund is the pot that most of faculty salaries and benefits are drawn from. This determines our unique status as a basic aid (community funded)  District. The majority of the unrestricted fund is generated from the property tax revenue.

Chart 1: Data: CCC fiscal portal

A Decade Out of Compliance

SMCCCD has been out of compliance with the 50% law for the 10 years, resulting in an $88,326,227 spending deficit to instructional salaries and benefits.

The 50% law in the California Ed Code requires that “each district spend at least half of its current expense of education each fiscal year for salaries and benefits of classroom instructors.”1 Despite promises to find a solution, our District  has remained shamefully out of compliance with this law since the 2014-2015 fiscal year. In 2024, we were at 41%. In the year 2022-2023 alone, SMCCCD failed to  spend $18,450,778 that should have gone to faculty salaries and benefits. Cumulatively, SMCCCD has a spending deficit of $88,326,227. They  claim they are trying many “strategies” to meet the compliance, but without much success.2

Giving faculty raises, increasing faculty benefit contributions, and increasing part-time pay parity would all bring our District closer to achieving the 50% allocation expectations.

Faculty have also heard the narrative from our administrators or our Board that the 50% law is not realistic for a Basic Aid District or it is “outdated.”3 Let’s remind ourselves that other Basic Aid Districts are abiding by this law. For example, the San-Jose Evergreen District is currently at 50.4% while West Valley-Mission was at 51.4% in 2023-24. In fact, SMCCCD’s rate of compliance is the lowest among all 73 Community College Districts in California. The charts below detail our district’s annual spending deficiencies. And 50% is the floor, not the ceiling.

The Struggles of our faculty living in an area with the highest average median income

What does it mean for faculty livelihoods when we work in the county with the nation’s highest Area Average Income (AMI)?4 In 2024, San Mateo County’s average income was $149,300 (based on the household of 2).5 While the low-income threshold, determined as 80% of AMI, was $125,350. Most faculty in our District earn less than this. Clearly, faculty are not getting what we deserve for the work we do to make our institution function.

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Part-time faculty: pay parity rate still lags behind many Bay 10 college Districts

Two contracts ago, AFT  finally convinced the District to agree to a pay parity goal of 85%. “Parity” refers to equity in pay for part-time faculty members, meaning they are paid comparably to similarly educated and experienced full-time faculty for the same work. Parity was also codified in our contract making clear that it’s not an abstract concept, but rather a concrete goal. The District refused to settle on a timeline for parity fulfillment; therefore, six years later at 80.5%, we still have a ways to go to achieve parity.

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Parity in the Bay 10:
How do we compare?

Marin: 95%
Peralta: 87.5%
San Francisco: 86%
Foothill-De Anza: 85%
West Valley-Mission: 82%
San Mateo: 80.5%
Contra Costa: 80%
San Jose-Evergreen: 75%
Chabot-Las Positas: 72%
Ohlone: 54 – 70% (64% avg)

What can be done?

Increasing part-time parity to already contractually agreed upon goals, paying out compensation and benefits at the levels other comparable districts enjoy, and meeting the 50% law are things that the District can and should do if they put their priorities in the right place, to improve the support faculty deserve so we can serve our students better. Making improvements to our contract through strong negotiations and member participation and continuing to call out the Board of Trustees on their failures to meet state legal obligations can make a difference. However, our union cannot do this without our members.

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Notes

  1. Chancellors Office: Fifty Percent Law
  2. FISCAL YEAR 2024-25 ADOPTION BUDGET REPORT 
  3. See this report published by the League of California Community College
  4. Report: San Mateo County has country’s highest low-income threshold
  5. 2024 San Mateo County Income Limits 

Don’t forget: You can join AFT’s negotiations by signing up here! You can participate in AFT’s public actions at Wednesday evening Board meetings and even make public comments. Reach out to your chapter chairs on each campus to learn more about getting involved with AFT1493!