From the Editor: Communications and Negotiations

Negotiations season is nearly upon us! While it’s difficult to know for sure how the governor’s final budget will shape up in July, CCFT will push hard to retain every recent compensation gain we’ve made. As we prioritize other faculty needs going into negotiations, these are the articles under examination for the 2013-2016 contract:

• Ancillary Activities (Art. 16.6) Teams agreed that adjunct faculty represents an under-utilized resource at the college when it comes to shared governance and professional work.  A sub-committee will meet in the fall of 2013 to develop ideas for the funding of significant ancillary activities.
• Board Policy on Sexual Harassment and Discrimination (BP 5040) A subcommittee will meet in the Fall of 2013 to add due process protections for faculty.
• Leaves (Art. 10) Will be reopened in 2013-14 to incorporate the Side Letter of Agreement on State Disability Insurance for Adjunct Faculty.
• Evaluation and Tenure (Art. 17) A thorough review will take place across 2014-15 academic year; all faculty will be surveyed for input.
• Workload (Art. 11) New state regulations may lead us to negotiate in areas such as distance education, interdisciplinary classes, and counseling.

It is more important than ever that we have full representation on CCFT Council. Serving as a rep is a great way to understand how the union sets negotiation priorities, to give input yourself, and to represent your colleagues. As a representative you would attend a meeting once a month on a Monday afternoon, from 2:30 - 4:30 pm, and we have delicious snacks!

Nominations for new council reps are underway. The term is two years, and current reps whose terms are up can run again. Nominations will close on Wednesday, March 26, and elections will be held by written ballot from Tuesday, April 8 – Tuesday, April 22. 

by Diane Putnam

In addition to new council representatives, some officers’ positions are open, including a two-year completion of Debora Bone’s three-year term of President. Debora has decided to retire from Cabrillo at the end of this year. Conrad Scott-Curtis, currently the full-timer Vice President, is available to run for President, so that position of full-timer Vice President is also open for a two-year completion of his three-year term. Other officer positions up for election include Membership Chair and Historian.

As always, please be in ongoing contact with your current CCFT representative(s) to provide input on all current and upcoming issues and topics for negotiations, and keep an eye out for more opportunities to offer your perspective to CCFT, including an upcoming survey on the faculty evaluation process.

I am, quite regretfully, concluding my term as CCFT Communications Director this spring. It was a matter of work/life balance and not at all an easy decision. Since this marks two years (roughly) since the Faculty Voice went online, it feels like a good time to do a pulse check on whether the recent online-only format has been working for everyone.

Hopefully, you saw my email on March 12th about our very brief CCFT Communications Survey. If you haven’t already, please respond to these six multiple choice and two open-ended questions about how CCFT can best reach you without adding to your workload.

The Communications Survey closes at midnight on Tuesday, March 25th.  Be candid in your feedback about the types of information you’d most like to get in future communications as well as the best ways to contact you and present negotiations updates and other news and announcements. Results will be reviewed and presented in the April issue of the Faculty Voice.