What Has the Union Done for You Lately?

1. Upgrading our Seniority Rehire Preference (SRP)
by Barbara Hanfling, Executive Director, FA, AFT 6157

Faculty often believe what they are told by their administrators. But sometimes that information can be incorrect. An adjunct faculty member was told by her dean and by Academic Support Payroll, that once adjunct faculty acquired Seniority Rehire Preference (SRP) at 33%, that she could not increase that amount to 40%. She had originally worked the 3 consecutive Semester at 33%; and then subsequently worked 3 consecutive semesters at 40%. She contacted her union.

Both the Union and District agreed that this was a misinterpretation of the contract. Here is a copy of the email that was sent by the Acting Vice Chancellor of Human Resources to all deans and administrative services and support:

“We believe there has been a misunderstanding regarding the gaining of faculty SRP as delineated in Article 9.18. I have consulted with the FA as well as Donna Williamson, the District’s chief negotiator for faculty negotiations, regarding the agreement language.We are clarifying the language as follows:

It is the intent of the language to allow faculty who initially attain SRP at 33% may, in subsequent semesters, be employed at 40% for 3 consecutive semesters and have their SRP increased to 40%.”

2. My Experience with the Union

by Elaine Amo Kafte-EVC Faculty

My name is Elaine and I am a new instructor (faculty) at Evergreen Valley College, in the newly-approved Nurse Assistant Training Program. As most of you know, teaching involves quite a bit of work and dedication, and the first semester of teaching, especially in a brand new program, can be quite overwhelming! In my case, I just had a baby in December, which added to my initial feelings of being overwhelmed.

The good news is that we have a wonderful Union to act as an advocate for faculty when needed. Barbara Hanfling and Frank Espinoza met with me in February to warmly welcome me to Evergreen. They introduced me to the Union and outlined the many benefits available to us as faculty.

Despite their extremely busy schedules, they took the time to meet with HR to intercede on my behalf in resolving an issue regarding step placement. I appreciate so much their efforts and couldn’t be more grateful to have a Faculty Association and leaders in the Association that I could trust.

3. Thanks to the Union!
by Farideh Dada, SJCC Faculty

I barely knew about the significance of the Faculty Union until last semester, when I faced a problem in my contract. I had almost ignored it because I thought it might be too complicated and time-consuming to fix it, until a coworker suggested that I take the issue to Barbara Hanfling and ask for advice.

I sent Barbara an e-mail hopelessly, not even waiting for her response. I knew she is too busy to take care of my case. To my wonder, I received an immediate response from Barbara, so concerned as if the issue had affected her, not me.

Barbara kept communicating with me, asking for the information she needed to complete the settlement with the district. Even during the break, she didn’t forget my case and continued her communications with me.

I am glad I had this experience. It helped me learn more about the function and importance of the union. Now I feel more secure, knowing that Barbara and her wonderful team are backing us, teachers.