At the outset, one can never predict the path that negotiations will take. We always hope for a straight-forward process that is conducted with mutual respect. One thing is certain: the negotiation process depends on YOU. In the past, we have enjoyed your unwavering support. We are known around the state for how unified we are, and the team does not take this for granted. It is your unity and support that sets the tone for the entire process. I look forward to the next few months as we all move through this process together.

If you know anyone who was planning on attending the Holiday Party but does not have Internet access, it would be greatly appreciated if you could pass this information on.

Thanks!

Your ACCCEA Holiday Party Committee

Happy Holidays!

Here is the language as it appears in our current contract document:

A deductible amount of $75 per employee and up to $225 per family shall be applied, per calendar year, for dental care other than preventive and diagnostic services. (Pg-40)

Here is the corrected language as it should appear in our current contract document:

Effective January 1, 2004 a deductible amount of $75 per employee and up to $225 per family shall be applied, per calendar year, for dental care including preventive and diagnostic services.

Although we proofed this document several times, we failed to pick-up the error. Note that as of March 1, 2008, we have agreed to re-instate the correct language.

Thank you for your understanding.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Michelle Bevan
Acting SSAACCC President

Michelle Bevan
Acting SSAACCC President

I regret to inform you that I will be taking a temporary leave of absence from my role as your union president due to personal reasons. In my absence, Michelle Bevan (SSAACCC Vice President) will be stepping up as Acting SSAACCC President.

Ed Perkins
SSAACCC President

Wilfred Parsons, ACCCEA Secretary, Faculty Association President

I wrote to Chris Berzinski, our NJEA Higher Ed consultant, and he said that “it doesn’t have to be in a personnel file for a long time for it to be used as evidence. It can be in for a short time – even a few days.”

At least we do have language in our contract saying that only material in the personnel file can be used in the hearing. Without that clause in the contract Chris says “arbitrators can and do bend the general understanding that you can’t use material from other “secret” files depending on the “probative value” of whatever document the administration may try to introduce.”

I have not looked at the contents of my personnel file since the Seventies. I spoke with Dennis today who said he has never checked his file. I suggest that faculty members check their file every year and make a copy of everything in it. I will set a good example and make an appointment to check my file and report back next week. Chris says that, “If a faculty member gets involved in a dispute with the administration, the member should check the file immediately and regularly and copy everything in it.”

What we might want to do in the next negotiations is to add a statement that anything that may be categorized as derogatory in nature cannot be placed in the file without the faculty member being notified and asked to sign an acknowledgement that they have seen it. Will Parsons, ACCCEA Secretary and Faculty Association President

In Part A of the Session, Chris went over the essential elements of the grievance process. Chris said the grievance procedure is the only part of the contract that is mandated by law. It is a problem solving process. In his fifteen point presentation, some of the things Chris talked about were what a grievance is, who handles the grievance, timeliness, just cause, preparing for arbitration, and Weingarten rights. In the session, Chris gave many examples from grievances he has handled and members asked questions and made comments.

Part B was role playing. Chris gave the members handouts describing a specific recent grievance at another nameless community college. The members read the case, discussed the facts, and looked through the SSAACCC contract for articles that might have been violated. The committee worked on three different cases. Chris said that he was impressed by the quality of thinking the Grievance Committee showed. He said they hit on almost all the essential elements in each case.

In Part C, Chris opened it up for discussion of problems on campus right now. Several problems came up including a problem with the College’s continual postponement of reclassification. Several options were discussed.

In the discussion, Grievance Committee Members were concerned that SSAACCC members do not know their Weingarten rights. These rights came out of a U.S. Supreme Court case in 1975. In that case, the Supreme Court said that employees have a right to union representation during investigative interviews by management. If the employee has a “reasonable belief” that disciplinary action may result from what he or she says at the hearing, he or she has the right to union representation. In the future SSAACCC members will be hearing more about how grievances are handled.

Toward the end of June, SSAACCC has scheduled training for Support Staff Area Representatives

Will Parsons, ACCCEA Secretary