PAJARO VALLEY FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MINUTES
November 8, 2004

Chaired by Carolyn Savino.
Facilitated by Lisa Massey.
Approval of minutes of October 11, 2004. Frank Dunbar, moved; Judy Ashton. All approved as written.

Old Business

Negotiations
Not much new. Team is still gathering information. They are working with Patty Cox of CFT and the district financial officer. Carmen Gagne will sit on the benefits committee. Carolyn Savino has requested that a negotiation team member sit on the budget committee and that Joe Manildi meet regularly with district budget personnel. With IBB, we are working to use the same numbers/budgets for negotiations. NO changes have been made to benefits. Management has agreed to a different prescription plan. Call the union if anyone at your site is overcharged.

New contract status
The new contract is almost finished…working on the index. Soon we will post it on the website and put it into everyone's hands. We will update it annually with tentative agreements, salary schedules and other changes.

Personal necessity days
Carolyn reminded members that although PN days are “no tell” days, there is a sidebar agreement between the district and the union that outlines the parameters that qualify and don't qualify for their use. There is also, as part of that agreement, the possibility of a joint union/district investigation if there is a suspected abuse of them which could result in per diem being docked from the employee for the misused days. Carolyn also cautioned the membership to warn staff about the January SBC and the consequences of taking personal necessity days during them. SBC days are reimbursed by the state on a positive attendance basis. Next year, SBC days will become part of the block grant gimmick that the governor has proposed. If the district finds that they lose money on them this year, they may choose to move their funding away from SBC days that are built into our work calendar. That could cost everyone a 1.5% permanent pay cut. That certainly isn't where we would want to see our money go!

NCLB
Sanctions: PVUSD has seven schools designated as either year-three or year-four schools. Year four sanctions require planning for serious restructuring. Year 5 sanctions could result in reconstitution of the staff, changing to charter, bringing in a private company to run school or some other major restructuring which would significantly raise student achievement. The union is working with Dr. Mays to bring in the research based AFT program “Restructuring Schools to Raise Achievement” to use as the restructuring plan for those schools. Beginning training takes place in NYC in January, and the district and the union are planning to send a team to start the ball rolling. With all of the schools that are under sanctions or will be in California, we are hoping that AFT will bring the training model to the West Coast.

Union and district have made trips to ABC District in Southern California to see the effects of RSRA on a district similar to ours.

Also, because of the contracting out requirements for intervention programs of NCLB if PVUSD becomes a program improvement district we want to bring the Extended Learning Program employees under the union umbrella so that they are covered by bargaining unit contract protections against this outsourcing of our jobs.

Half of the PVFT Executive Council will be up for election in March 2005. Nominations will open in February and the election will be held in March. Positions that will be up for election in March are: President, Secretary, and Vice Presidents for north and south zone elementary, all middle school zones, WHS, SELPA and adult ed. Nominations can be called in ahead of the February general membership meeting to be brought forward at that meeting, or they can be made on the floor. If there is a white ballot, the election will be by acclamation at the March membership meeting. If there are several candidates for the same office, the rules outlined in the Landsman – Griffith Act will be followed.

Staffing
There is still a hiring freeze in place due to the district budget issues and most non-classroom positions still have long term subs in them. It was asked if PVFT could file a grievance because of the released time positions that are being served by substitutes. Basically, if the district is providing the service it doesn't seem feasible that it can be grieved.

New Business

Upcoming events

• Building rep training for veteran reps for November 17. Please let Carolyn know what you want to study. Site TBA. 4:00 to 6:00. New building rep training Nov. 29 with standard new rep topics.
• We will hold the holiday party on December 10 or 21 at the Green Valley Grill.
• QuEST West, Dec. 3-4, Oakland. Let Carolyn know. She, Dr. Mays and Colleen Stobbe are presenting on PVFT/PVUSD Partnership.
• New Teacher Symposium, Jan. 31-Feb. 1 in San Jose. Another presentation on PVFT/PVUDS partnership.
• CFT convention, March 19-21 place TBA.
• AFT QuEST, July 7-10 in Washington, DC.

Substitutes
Primary tend to spread students around. Some schools have the principals or itinerant teachers cover. Secondary will have teachers give up their prep and get paid to teach. Some have been paid per diem and others $25/hour. If special ed classes are not covered sometimes special ed teachers have to go to other schools to cover classes.

Release time teachers need subs if they are absent so that teachers don't lose their release time. Renee Heinlein suggested keeping track of lost release time and getting substitute time for compensation. Some schools are pulling RS teachers to sub. Some people are required to go in and not paid, some refuse to go in. You should have the right to say no. Some teachers are asked to cover for administrators. Long-term subs do not have to attend staff meetings.

Good of the Order

• TDS money does not go directly to employee accounts. Deferred net pay collects interest at the county then gets rolled into the General Fund, not distributed to the employees.
• Better to attend the veterans' building rep training than no training at all.
• Teachers are not receiving timely communication or courteous customer service from HR and payroll (for salary increments and other issues). The payroll department continues to make errors and can't explain why. Walk your paperwork through and have them sign a copy acknowledging receipt.

Adjournment at 6:25 P.M.
Moved: Heloise Shaser, Seconded: Darlene Wilcox, Approved: All