Report from Open Bargaining: August 10th, 2022
On Wednesday, your AFT 2121 bargaining team met with the District once again. Sadly, the District’s lead negotiator, Clara Starr, was absent. This after they insisted on waiting weeks to restart negotiations to accommodate Starr’s vacation schedule.
Six weeks ago, AFT 2121 made proposals around class size minimum and filling positions of retired faculty. This week the District claimed they had already responded, but it quickly became clear that they had neglected to email their responses to AFT. When they gave us those responses Wednesday, we saw that their plans boil down to a refusal to accept partnership or input. They want control. AFT 2121’s former president and bargaining team member, Malaika Finkelstein, made the case (see here) for why it is crucial to maintain a class size minimum of 15, with time for classes to grow. But the District is refusing. They won’t actually cancel everything below 20, but want to retain their right to do so. This position combined with the classes the district has already canceled demonstrates a lack of vision. The district is working backwards from the destructive layoffs they made in May, instead of acting towards building enrollment by both supporting classes that are already on the schedule and supporting the students who are already registered in them.
Similarly, AFT 2121 had proposed replacing retiring FT faculty with FT faculty, including those laid off in May, so that our college can do a better job of meeting student demand. The District says they will “consider” doing so, on a case-by-case basis. The continued destruction of the Fall 2022 schedule is unacceptable and is already causing real harm to our students & communities (see here). Your AFT 2121 bargaining team plans to come to the table again on Tuesday, August 23rd, 3-4:30 PM. Join us! Register in advance for the next bargaining session here.
Together we can build momentum for student-centered growth and winning the salary restoration that is due to us. Join your colleagues and show the power we have acting together in solidarity.
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