In the problem solving process, determining who has the power to solve the problem is critical. Using persuasion or pain on someone who does not have the power to do anything about the problem is a waste of time. The person actually making the decisions is not always obvious. The powerbroker in the Southern New Jersey Democratic Party organization is a banker who has never run for office. If you want to run for office as a democrat, you had better know who that is. A former ACC President, Ron Bush, who had been an NEA representative in New York, spent a year wining and dining a faculty bargaining unit president who was only peripherally involved in making decisions.

So who has the power in ACCC negotiations? In order for an agreement made at the “table” to stick, it must be ratified by the bargaining unit membership and by the ACCC Board of Trustees. Usually the bargaining unit members unofficially delegate that authority to the negotiating team. In the past, the proposed faculty contract has been ratified. There were two times when it has been close, but it was ratified. Most of the time, the vote in favor of approval was unanimous, except for one vote opposed. That one vote was cast by a member “on principle”. In effect, the bargaining team has the power to make decisions for the unit.

On the other side of the “table” sits Joe Rossi and one or two people who provide some kind of support and who are there mostly for show. Joe does not have the power to make important decisions. He can rearrange his proposal and bring it back as a new proposal, but it is the same lady in a different dress. He does what he is told.

Members of the Board are political appointees. Some are very good and some have little idea about what goes on at the College. There is no official training for new Board members about what their role is. The Board should be mostly concerned with broad policy decisions and major financial decisions. The Board should not be involved in day to day running of the College. The Board delegates those decisions to the President. The Board appoints a small committee of Board members who communicate with the President and with Joe Rossi about negotiations. The Board’s committee is mostly concerned with money. Usually the Board delegates decisions about negotiations to the President. Usually the decision makers for the Board are the President and a few of his top advisors. On a couple of occasions, we felt it was the Board’s team who was calling to shots. It is my guess that the President is in charge of negotiations now, but that the Board may be making decisions later if negotiations seem to be getting out of control.

Will Parsons, Unity Team Negotiations Coordinator