What has The Union Done for You Lately?

by Barbara Hanfling, Executive Director

Summer School Pay Grievance Victory
After almost 2 years of working on our informal grievance regarding summer school pay at SJCC, the Union finally emerged victorious in its attempt to ensure that faculty who had worked summer school during 2005, 2006 were paid appropriately. Faculty received up to a total of $300.00 for the unilateral change.

On July 10th, approximately 35 faculty at SJCC received a paycheck with retroactive pay for a Union grievance victory for summer school pay for 2005 and 2006. Through the diligent eye of our fiscal officer, Linda Ferrell, it came to the attention of the Union that a unilateral change had been made in the way faculty were paid for these summers.

In the past, if faculty were moving from one step to another (e.g. step 5-6), the faculty member was paid the higher step payment starting July 1. Unilaterally the District stopped that payment in 2005 without notice to the Union.

In exchange for settling this grievance and winning this settlement for many faculty, the Union and District have now agreed that summer school is paid at the prior year’s step, as the contract language was ambiguous in its language and interpretation.

The Union has been reassured that the practice at EVC has always been to pay faculty working summers at the same rate of pay. However, in the chance event that faculty at EVC or SJCC were missed and should have received retroactive pay for the summers 2005 and 2006, our settlement included an extension until September 26th 2007 for faculty who did not receive this retroactive pay to provide the Union with the appropriate information. We would need to receive copies of the contracts showing us that in the past, pay was calculated on two steps (Step 4 and 5) and that in 2005, this practice was changed. Please note the deadline date of September 26 2007.

Sabbatical Language-Right to Teach During Sabbaticals:
We always encourage faculty to investigate taking sabbaticals once they reach their sixth year of tenure in the District. Sabbaticals are a means of enhancing the professional growth of faculty members through a variety of activities and/or experiences which have significant relevance to the goals of the District, to the faculty members own assignment and their education. Our contract allows 90% pay for a semester sabbatical and 70% pay for a year sabbatical.

Many faculty are able to bank some overload before their sabbatical to ensure that they receive 100% of their pay and their retirement. For most faculty, the issue of loosing out on a full year of retirement is key in their need to ensure 100% for each semester of the sabbatical.

For those faculty who do not bank overload, they have always been able to teach classes during their sabbatical. Still, there had been some rumblings about a Human Resources memo that was never seen by the Union, stating that these classes needed to be taught outside their regular workload. This memo had never been bargained with the Union and there was concern about its legality. When it was brought to the attention of the FA, AFT 6157 in February 2007, we came to agreement with Human Resources that a message needed to be sent out informing all deans that faculty could teach during a sabbatical at any time.

Unfortunately this memo did not appear as promised by Anita Morris, Vice Chancellor of Human Resources. It took 6 months until the following email was sent to all deans. In the meantime, there was a faculty member at SJCC who gave up his sabbatical for the fall semester because he was told he could only teach outside the academic semester. Finally on July 24, the following was issued to all appropriate personnel:

HR Bulletin: Labor Relations (07/08 – 1) – Banking Overload While on Sabbatical

This notice serves as official notification that the following email/directive issued by Human Resources on August 23, 1999, regarding Banking Overload While on Sabbatical, is no longer in effect:

“Overload may only be assigned outside of the faculty member’s normal working hours. Overloads may not be assigned during regular hours for a faculty member on sabbatical. One reason for the sabbatical is that the faculty member cannot complete the sabbatical project and work during his/her regular assignment.”

Effective immediately, the following interpretation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Faculty Association, AFT 6157 and the San Jose/Evergreen Community College District applies:

While on sabbatical, a faculty member may work a regular load and/or overload.

Although long overdue, this is the correct interpretation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and will now help faculty maintain their full year/semester of service credit if they choose to teach or use banked load during their sabbatical.