Text Box: Volume X, Issue 1 January 2009 Text Box: The AdjuncT Advisor Text Box: President Elaine Bobrove Elbob5@comcast.net Co-Executive Vice-Presidents Sharon Goldstein sharongoldst@comcast.net Karen Feldman kfeldman@camdencc.edu Treasurer Ernie Kiesel EKiesel4@comcast.net Secretary Larry DeVaro ljdevaro@camdencc.edu Members at Large Martha Bachman Mystic4664@comcast.net James Lawson JLConcept@aol.com Membership Co-Chairs Karen Feldman kfeldman@camdencc.edu Martha Bachman mystic4664@comcast.net Editor Irene Schiller irene@northlab.com

Camden County College Adjunct Faculty Federation

AFT 4965

www.ccc-aft.org
Text Box:  AFT LOCAL BREAKS NEW GROUND IN ADJUNCT ORGANIZING NJ MOVES TO SUPER LOCAL The Camden County College Adjunct Faculty Federation is a “stand alone” local as are the eight other community college adjunct locals in New Jersey. This means that we are not affiliated with the CCC full-time faculty who are all members of the National Education Association. Although there are benefits in being a “stand alone” local, notably a lack of competition with full-timers during negotiations, there are also problems. We lack the support of other campus unions in collective bargaining. For many stand alones, it is often difficult to maintain viability. Furthermore, stand alones do not have much political clout. All of this is about to change. The NJ AFT, in combination with the national American Federation of Teachers, has taken a dramatic step toward changing the adjunct landscape. The nine AFT community college locals have voted to join together to form a super local called United Adjuncts of New Jersey. Benefits of consolidation United Adjuncts would start with 2400 members statewide. When 2400 adjuncts speak with one voice, people listen. Legislators need to take cognizance of 2400 voters, most with families and friends. These are all people who vote. We will have a voice that does not whisper in Trenton, but that is outspoken and prominent. We will be able to create a new movement that will work toward academic freedom, job security, and better pay for all of us. Consolidation will allow us to build a statewide political operation so we will be able to offer organized and pointed testimony to the Legislature in behalf of our needs. We have already moved in this direction by working in cooperation with other AFT locals—notably Rutgers, the College Council, and the AFT Healthcare workers—with a legislative lobbyist dedicated to our interests. It will allow us to organize the unaffiliated college adjuncts from the nine other community colleges in New Jersey. It will coordinate training to make us all more effective. We will be able to have coordinated communications and publications; we wouldn’t have to keep reinventing the wheel. Although each community college would have to continue to negotiate its own contract, we will be more efficient, building on each other’s successes. Furthermore, we will have a dedicated staff rep trained to concentrate on the needs and aspirations of community college adjuncts. It will promote the viability of less strong locals by taking over some of the functions that these locals are not able to handle. This would include a part-time bookkeeper to facilitate those groups unable to process their financial obligations. It will enable us to provide legal support for adjuncts who are processing difficult grievances. United Adjuncts will hold regular delegate assemblies that will offer training as well as offering an opportunity to provide direction to the Executive Board. The United Adjuncts constitution is structured to preserve the autonomy of each constituent adjunct group while providing the benefits of consolidation. What does this mean for CCCAFF? With membership ratification, CCCAFF will become a chapter in the statewide local. We will maintain our local autonomy in making decisions that affect us at CCC while gaining the benefits of working with a much larger group of adjuncts all of whom share certain common concerns. Our incorporation into United Adjuncts will mean a slight dues increase for our members. Our present dues are 1.75% of your salary. Dues would go to 2%. To put this into historical perspective, our dues were at 2% previously. Because of careful management, the CCCAFF Executive Board was able to lower dues. For the past few years, we have been able to absorb increases in dues from both the national AFT and the NJ State Federation of Teachers. The added services offered by United Adjuncts would necessitate the dues increase. At $630/contact hour, the increase would be $4.00/3credit course/semester. What happens next? The Executive Board of the CCCAFF has already endorsed the merger. During the spring semester, we will hold a ratification vote. Only full members are permitted to vote. After five community college adjunct locals have ratified the merger, the organization will become functional. Each college chapter will have a representative on the Executive Board of the new organization and will have delegates to the United Adjuncts delegate assembly based on the chapter membership.

Working together,

we can

make a difference!

 
Next Page
v