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 VVC Part-Time Faculty United

The Voice of Part-Time Faculty at VVC
PART-TIME FACULTY WORKING FOR PART-TIME FACULTY!

Victor Valley College Part-Time Faculty United
Preserving democratic free choice for the purpose of building a better profession, 
a better institution and better student learning.

Email VVC Part-Time Faculty United/ AFT

Congratulations to Victor Valley Community College Part-Time Faculty for getting their election this semester!  

SEND IN YOUR BALLOTS BY JUNE 8th!
Part-Time Faculty United at VVC President Jack Robinson and his trusty Vice-Presidents Chris Turner, Mike Mello, along with the entire VVC organizing committee have had a real fight on their hands, with crafty administrators and duplicitous CTA sneaks contend with.   Nevertheless, with your support, we all look forward to a big win for part-time faculty at VVC! 

History:
March 7, 2003: Public Employment Relations Board Rules in Favor of Part-Time Faculty at VVC!!!  Actions of the VVC administrators ruled ILLEGAL!

From Mary Millet, AFT Part-Time Faculty Representative for Southern California, as posted March 12, 2003 on the California Part-time Faculty Association listserv:

WE WON! PERB rules in favor of Part-Time Faculty United and says that part-timers have the right to choose their own union - PERB (the Public Employment Relations Board) ruled Friday that Victor Valley College had illegally forced part-time faculty into the full-time faculty union.  The college was ordered to cease and desist from showing favoritism toward one union over another. 

Allen Gildard, leader of the organizing committee for Part-Time Faculty United-AFT, said “This is a great day for VVC part-timers!  All we ever wanted was an election and the chance to form out own part-time faculty union.  Now PERB has told us we are free to go ahead and do that.”  The Educational Employment Relations Act (also known as the Rodda Act) clearly states that a school district must remain strictly neutral when employees are organizing their own union.  The employer is forbidden by state law from showing preference to one union over another.  Victor Valley College clearly violated the law, when in February 2002 they forced all part-time faculty, without their knowledge or consent, into the CTA/ VVCFA full-time faculty union.  Before the decision, AFT representatives had notified the VVC Board of Trustees that their imminent decision was illegal and
flew in the face of the democratic principles this nation was founded on.  When he learned before
the vote that AFT had collected cards from about 20% of all part-timers asking for an election and
union representation by AFT, one lone Board of Trustees member said, “Can’t we at least send out a postcard to see if this is what the part-timers want?”

Told that it was “a done deal,” for the past year part-time faculty have been prevented from
forming their own union until this matter was settled in court.  During that time, Part-Time Faculty
United – AFT has repeatedly called for an election with the agreement of all the parties, but the
college BOT and the CTA/VVCFA leadership have refused to consider it.  Now the roadblocks
have been removed and part-timers are free to form their own union.  Gildard says, “This is a time when part-time faculty need to support the union that has fought for them.  Without AFT, part-timers would have lost their right to a strong and sustained voice at VVC.  I am asking every part-timer who has waited to sign an AFT card to do so now.  We need signed cards from a majority of part-time faculty so we can finally have an election, form our own union, force the school district to release our state equity funds, insist on paid sick leave guaranteed by law, and negotiate a contract that includes medical benefits and paid office hours.”  Gildard continues: “It is time for part-timers at Victor Valley College to be treated with the dignity and respect that we deserve.” 

VVC Part-Time Faculty United is organizing!  Have you signed a card? 

Have You Signed a Card, or Sent Your Signed Card Back?  Now is the time to sign a card and mail back your signed and dated authorization card to Part-Time Faculty United, PMB #435, 23120 W. Lyons Ave., #5, Newhall, CA 91321-2669.  Without a sufficient number of these cards, we will not be able to form our own organization for collective bargaining in order to improve pay and teaching conditions for VVC adjuncts. Please send it back today. If you need a new card, please leave us an e-mail and we will send you one today.

Why a Part-Time Faculty Union?

In the past, there was no real way that part-time faculty could gain a raise in pay or select a desired section for a course other than to negotiate these desires with department chairs individually.  This led to differences in course selection methods, loss of seniority for recall to another semester and other disparities that have left many part-time faculty feeling left out of the decision making process and without a voice in the process.

The City College of San Francisco part-time faculty have 85% pro-rata pay (they make 85% of what full-time faculty make for doing the same job).  Part-timers in Los Rios Community College District (Sacramento area) make 80% pro-rata pay.  By comparison, VVC part-timers (even those who have completed the district's celebrated Associates Program) make less than 50% pro-rata pay!

The only way that faculty can guarantee fair pay, benefits and inclusion into the decision making processes is to have them included in a collective bargaining agreement.  Through this negotiation process between the faculty and the college  representatives, a fair agreement on these important matters can be found.  By continuing to act as individuals, we have accomplished little to advance our professional status at VVC.

By creating a democratically led adjunct faculty association, adjuncts can be sure that a newly negotiated contract will reflect their wishes because they will be negotiated by adjuncts, with advice from AFT/CFT when asked, and any tentative agreements will be ratified by the full VVC adjunct membership.

What Does Signing the AFT/CFT Authorization Card Mean?

Many adjunct faculty were recently given an Authorization Card to sign and send back to Part-Time Faculty United AFT/CFT.  By completing and signing the card, the individual adjunct declares hers or his interest in AFT/CFT for the purpose of getting an election.  At a later date, assuming that AFT/CFT is chosen by adjunct faculty members, part-timers will have a choice whether or not they would like to become members of AFT/CFT (which entitles them to have a voice in the leadership of the union, input into union policy making, participation in the collective bargaining process, ability to serve as a union officer as well as other benefits).  When an election is had, a vote for AFT/CFT authorizes AFT/CFT to bargaining wages, benefits and other terms and conditions of employment, as well as to adjust grievances on the behalf of part-timers.  With the strength of roughly 380 faculty members, adjunct faculty will quickly gain their combined voice to make the changes needed to put them on an equal footing with the college administration. This will enable us to negotiate fair contracts to help part-time faculty gain the respect that we deserve. All signed cards will be kept confidential and will at no time be seen by college administrators.

Above are a few questions often asked regarding the benefit of organizing a part-timer's union.  Please submit any questions that you have - this is important because there has been some misinformation spread on campus by persons who oppose our efforts - let us know, and we will reply to your concerns and post questions (anonymously) and responses on these pages.

Are You On Our Mailing List?  Keep updated with the latest news about VVC part-time faculty events by leaving us your e-mail address, home mailing address and in which department you teach. All contacts will be kept confidential.