Bargaining update and next open bargaining meeting!

Posted on March 18, 2021 by AFT 2121

Bargaining update: Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Thank you to all of the AFT2121 members who participated in the union’s second impact’s bargaining with the district on Tuesday. Please keep coming and spread the word! We’ll kick off Spring break with our third bargaining session, scheduled for Friday, March 26, from 11-1. Be sure to register in advance with the link below!

During the session on Tuesday, we pressed the administration further regarding the use of HEERF funding . John Al-Amin presented very narrow guidelines for the use of funds that we do not find credible. After his presentation, in which he didn’t budge from the administration’s stance that HEERF I and HEERF II (Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund, or CARES act) funds cannot be used to help with the budget deficit, Mr Al-Amin left early. We will continue to challenge the district on the use of these funds, while awaiting more guidelines regarding the use and amount of funds from the third stimulus package (HEERF III) that the Federal government passed last week.

Tom Boegel also left the session an hour early. Dianna Gonzales represented the administration for the last hour of the session. Alayna Fredericks, our fearless chief negotiator, expressed the team’s concerns with the MYBEP (multi-year budget enrollment plan). AFT2121 rejects this plan. It is not credible. It does not reflect AFT2121’s values. It leaves no room for growth. It diminishes enrollment and thus increased funding, slashes programs, and fails to serve our community or uphold our mission.

Alayna acknowledged that we are having high stakes discussions, and that we expect the district to regain credibility at the bargaining table. We asked that the administration begin to communicate and work with us in a transparent, collaborative, and respectful way. Dianna Gonzales committed her team to moving forward with that tone.

We hope to see you at the next session on Friday, 3/26!

In Unity,

Your AFT 2121 Bargaining Team

P.S. Please read and share the instructions for participating in open bargaining.

You are invited to the next Open Bargaining Zoom meeting.

When: Mar 26, 2021, 11:00 AM (join at 10:45 AM)
Register in advance for this meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYodeirpzstE9JqfFMrD8yyDzWhmbc_cJL9
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
We will start admitting people from the zoom waiting room at 10:45 AM, and will continue admitting up to the start of the meeting. Note that if you arrive after 11 AM, you may need to wait until a break/caucus to be admitted. Thanks for your patience.

Testimonials from members at open bargaining

In this safe unified space with my faculty family, I was once again reminded of the students I have been called to teach. The ones we often call “hard to serve”, “marginalized”, “under-represented”; these students often look, act, and sound like me. I learned they are cutting the “Body Classes” that are found in physical education department and focus on the intelligence known as bodily kinesthetics. Until recently I narrowly viewed these classes as preparation for professional performance. These classes create a special space for new students like the ones I love. In these spaces, they get to “dip their toe” in academia, to find their grounding in a college setting, and from that space learn that they too can, “do the college thing”. These same students also disproportionately experience trauma and are often called ‘resilient”. Trauma lives in the body. I stand in unity with my Body Class Physical Education Faculty Family who not learning spaces for these students but also active their vagus nerve and create opportunities for much needed stress release. During the meeting I did not hear Admin talking about students and how we serve them in multiple ways including stress relief. I only heard we must cut. They did not say we must cut in order to grow or how this plan benefits students. I only heard classes are being cuts for all students, those who want to go to a 4-Year college and those who want to discover if college is for them. Both types of students belong at CCSF. Both types of class belong here. Those that focus on the body and those that focus on academics. I am coming back again and hope this time I hear a plan and not simply a cut.

—Patricia Nunley, AFT 2121 Member

Reasons I’m happy I attended the Open Bargaining session: 1. It gave me a strong sense of community and shared purpose during a very challenging time. 2. Alayna and Malaika are excellent leaders and spokespeople. We are well-represented. 3. The session gave us the chance to see and hear the opposition. I got what I needed.

—Lenny Carlson, AFT 2121 Member