Contact Your Senator Now on Bills Moving to a Vote Soon

The most serious threats faculty members face now (March 31-April 3) are to the benefits that are part of their compensation package.  House Speaker Weatherford has made it clear that his top priority this session is to cut retirement and health insurance benefits for public employees. We have a chance of stopping this action in the Senate if faculty call (from a private phone) the Florida Senator from their district and leave a 30-second polite message with the receptionist. (It helps to mention that you live in the district.) See link below for phone number of your Senator.        

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United Faculty of Florida Bargaining Update March 28, 2014

Dear Colleagues,
 
Your United Faculty of Florida- FSCJ Bargaining Team met with the Administration’s team today. We worked on several issues of importance to all Faculty.
 
We reached Tentative Agreement on Article 4 (Faculty Rights).  There were small changes to the current language, the main one being a clearer faculty notification policy when derogatory documents are placed in a personnel file.
 

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Public Employee Pensions in New York State

 

New York state’s school district 
employees (outside of New York 
City) generally belong to one of two 
public pension systems: the New 
York State Teachers’ Retirement 
System (TRS) and New York State 
Employee Retirement System (ERS). 
TRS members include teachers, 
counselors, and principals, while 
support staff members are generally 
part of ERS.

 

 

Click here to read more:

 

Adjunct 'service lists' restored to UMS site

Every person who teaches part-time in the University of Maine System is on a "service list" that helps keep track of seniority and rank. The System is required to compile the lists once a year, but the 2013 list disappeared from the UMS website a few months ago after it underwent a redesign.

As of March 27, 2014, the 2013 service lists are back, published by university. Check them out at:

http://www.maine.edu/about-the-system/system-office/human-resources/labor-relations/

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WBLTA at the Capital

On Wednesday, WBLTA's Joe Christensen, Paul Seeba, and President Michael McKenzie met with state legislators (Pictured below along with Stillwater and Forest Lake EdMN members).

WBLTA met with Senator Wiger, Majority Leader Hanson, Representative Fischer and Senator Chamberlain, among others.(Legislative briefing before heading to the capital)

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BCFPE Stresses “Right to Representation”

In response to reports that some supervisors are denying employees proper representation, Baltimore County Federation of Public Employees (BCFPE) president John Ripley wants members to know that union representation is their right. President Ripley says that it is important that union members know it is their responsibility to request to have a representative present during an interview with a supervisor. Ripley reports that some supervisors are denying an employee representation, by saying that a meeting is a “Fact Finding," not an investigatory inquiry.

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AFT-Maryland Aids Kansas Organizing Effort

AFT-Maryland staff and affiliate members journeyed to Wichita, Kansas, March 9-14 for a week of intensive training in the AFT organizing model and to help the Kansas Organization of State Employees (KOSE) identify potential activists and recruit new union members. The AFT-Maryland volunteers joined union members from Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, and Kansas in the joint organizing effort, which was launched as a part of the “Reclaiming the Promise of High Quality Public Services for Strong Communities,” an AFT national initiative."

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Minimum Wage Bill Stalled

The bill that would increase Maryland’s minimum wage to $10.10 an hour has been stalled in the Senate Finance Committee. Senator Thomas Middleton (D-Charles), chair of that committee says that he will not move on the minimum wage proposal until an agreement to raise the wages of workers who care for the developmentally disabled has been reached. Middleton wants to raise the hourly wage for workers who care for the developmentally disabled to a level that is higher than the proposed minimum wage increase.

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Snow Causes Delay in Maryland Legislative Process

The nine-inch snow storm that hit the city of Annapolis Monday, March 17th, delayed the schedule to which legislators are expected to adhere. Monday, March 17th, officially was “Crossover Day,” the last day when bills passed in the House or Senate can be sent to the corresponding subcommittee in the opposite chamber for consideration. Bills that fail to “crossover” are sent to the Rules Committee for review and a decision. Generally, legislation sent to the Rules Committee is considered more difficult to get passed.

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A Letter from the PATFA president

Dear PATFA members:

Members of the Part-time Faculty Association of Maine ratified the 2013-2015 contract with the University of Maine System by a vote 95-2 last month, and the board of trustees has approved it as well.

We concluded our negotiations with UMS on Friday, March 21.

The agreement is a miserable one, one I can barely find the energy to articulate.

-- A 2% increase in pay in 2013-14 (retroactive to Sept. 1, 2013) and 2014-15.

-- No retirement incentive, despite the hundreds of thousands of dollars set aside for AFUM retirement incentives.

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