When Are We Coming Back to Campus?
Some of us are anxious to get back to campus and to work. Some of us are anxious aboutcoming back to campus and to work. Some of us are frustrated about having to stay home. Some of us are afraid to leave our homes. No one is happy about our situation.
This past week we learned another Mt. SAC employee who works in Building 46 in Facilities tested positive for the coronavirus. This person was working on campus, so Facilities was closed, all employees sent home, and the building cleaned and disinfected. The employee is in isolation at home for 14 days. The District is also contact tracing the employee’s whereabouts to notify anyone who may have had contact with the employee.
This should act as a stark reminder that the coronavirus is still a threat to Mt. SAC. According to the LA County Health Department, the number of deaths is down 30%, but the number of known cases of infection is up by nearly 20% and hospitalizations are up about 15%. We are not yet out of the woods. While we all would like life to return to pre-coronavirus “normal,” returning to normal is going to take more time and patience.
President Scroggins has assembled a task force to develop a return to work plan that will include all the campus constituent groups. Your CSEA Chapter 262 is represented on this task force, and Chapter leadership will ensure any plans will include your health and safety as the primary concern — nothing is more important. Returning to work will be guided by LA County Health Department guidelines, the Community College Chancellor’s Office recommendations, and the facts. While we all want the pandemic to go away, we can’t wish it away. Remain vigilant, wash your hands often, and wear face coverings at all times when outside.
Year 3 Contract and Forms Now Available
Negotiations can be a lengthy process at the best of times, and these are not the best of times. While the District and CSEA 262 negotiating teams are learning how and adjusting to negotiating via Zoom, we are making progress, albeit slower than usual.
We have reached tentative agreements on a couple of issues, including the Holiday Schedule. As soon as our CSEA Field Office has completed its review of the agreement, we will notify you about the 2020-21 Holiday schedule.
What we have completed is posting the 2017-2020 Year three contract and all the new forms. The forms had to be made accessible and useable, so they are now all Word documents that can be filled out.
Wet signatures are no longer required because forms are being forwarded via e-mail since we cannot be on campus. Simple type in your name where a “signature” is required, save the document, and then forward that saved document with your signature to Human Resources.
If your evaluation is due during the telecommuting period, the contract language is still in effect. Your manager must provide you a copy of the evaluation at least two workdays prior to your evaluation meeting, and you are entitled to representation if you choose. Make sure your manager is using the new evaluation forms, which are located on the CSEA 262 contract page of the Human Resources web site at the following link:
https://www.mtsac.edu/hr/csea262/index.html
Voting Becomes Easier During Pandemic
On June 18, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 860 into law, which now requires election officials in California to provide vote-by-mail ballots to registered voters.
Newsom had signed an executive order requiring vote by mail ballots be issued, but legal challenges could have delayed or prevented the vote by mail option, so the state legislature passed a bill that Newsome signed into law. Now vote by mail is offered to all registered voters as an option. Vote by mail is not a requirement.
The law will ensure all registered voters in California will receive a vote-by-mail ballot, but in-person polling sites will remain open on Election Day. Another executive order Newsom signed on June 3, 2020 will ensure counties with in-person voting provide sufficient opportunities to maintain physical distancing. While two Republican representatives in the Assembly, Kevin Kiley (R-Rocklin) and James Gallagher (R-Yuba City), are challenging this executive order, Senate Bill 423 is working its way through the legislative process that would make the June 3 executive order a law, nullifying the challenges.
Mail-in balloting remains controversial, usually along party lines, but AB 860 was passed by the California lawmakers with bipartisan support. In California, vote-by-mail has increased each election, with a record-setting 72% of voters casting their ballot via mail during the March primary (which was before the Governor issued the statewide stay-at-home order).
Welcome to Mt. SAC: New Classified Professionals
At the May 13 Board of Trustees meeting, the college welcomed the following new or promoted classified employees:
Permanent New Hires
Timothy Chu, Systems Administrator (Information Technology)
During our current telecommuting period, send an e-mail and welcome them to Mt. SAC. Extend a warm welcome, invite them to a Zoom lunch or to lunch when we all return, and, if they work in your area or near you, make them feel welcome. Invite them to and encourage them to attend the next “virtual” Chapter meeting so they can introduce themselves.
CPD-Day 2020 - Your Input is Requested
CPD-Day is scheduled for Friday, August 14, 2020. For the first time ever, this will be a fully online event. The Classified Professional Development Committee would like your input to make this day valuable for you. Please complete the CPD-DAY Classified Staff Input Form by June 19th:
https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/cf090978b1d849e0927329867a01f31e
Humanitarian Assistance Fundraising
There are multiple opportunities to donate to the Humanitarian Assistance fund this year before, during, and after Annual Conference. Conference is one of the major fundraising opportunities of the year, and your generosity is appreciated. This year it is being held virtually, July 20-21. You may contribute in any of the following ways:
Chapter Pledge
Chapters can pledge their contribution to the fund while registering their delegates online. There will be a special recognition of these chapters during the final live delegate session, and on the Humanitarian committee’s webpage.
Send checks made payable to “CSEA Dorothy Bjork Assistance Fund” to:
Attn: Member Benefits 2045 Lundy Avenue San Jose, CA, 95131
Payroll Deductions
Members who sign up through payroll deduction for the Assistance fund will receive a Humanitarian fund memorabilia pin. They will also be entered in a raffle for a holiday feast. The winner will be drawn at the November board meeting.
To make payroll deductions, please download, fill out and print the “Dorothy Bjork Assistance Fund Deduction Application” and mail to CSEA Headquarters for processing.
Direct Donations
Delegates can donate direct contributions during the live delegate sessions via a donation link both days of Conference.
Silent Auction
More information will be available later when we are closer to Annual Conference.
Live Auction
Save the date for a live Humanitarian Auction on Day 2 of Conference, July 21 at 10 a.m., featuring the Humanitarian Committee: Allan Clark, Shane Dishman, Adam Weinberger and Monica Han.
CSEA YouTube
One of the many ways we have all learned to adapt during the coronavirus pandemic is how to communicate using video conferencing. Video conferences are not a new technological marvel. In fact, video conferencing has been used for more than fifty years. It has only been recently, though, that the use of video conferencing has exploded into everyday use, and mostly due to the easy access through the internet.
Our own California School Employees Association has only fairly recently begun taking advantage of social media, with a Facebook page (many, in fact), Instagram, Twitter, and, the King of all Social Media platforms — YouTube.
