On Thursday, June 20, the members of the Instructional Support Services Unit-CFT (ISSU-CFT) met to review and vote on a tentative agreement recommended by union President Julio Huerta and the executive board.

ISSU-CFT includes most of the nearly 225 professional and office staff at Pasadena City College. The independent ISSU unit voted to affiliate with the AFT last year as AFT Local 6525.

The tentative agreement completed negotiations between the district and ISSU-CFT on the re-opener of the current collective bargaining agreement. The main element of the tentative agreement is a salary increase totaling 4.79 percent over two years:

  • 2 percent retroactive for 2012-13;
  • 2 percent for 2013-14, plus
  • 0.79 percent, or half of the COLA that is included in next year’s state budget.

The district and ISSU-CFT also concluded agreements on a range of technical and procedural issues.

Following the meeting, Huerta and Pasadena City College Superintendent-President Mark Rocha made a joint statement: “This is a classic win-win agreement. ISSU-CFT and the district have concluded constructive negotiations that have led to an agreement that is good for the unit members and good for PCC. This was reflected in the unanimous approval of the ISSU-CFT membership. This is a turning point and we look forward to continuing to work together as labor-management partners.”

Rocha will bring the tentative agreement to the PCC Board of Trustees at its next business meeting of July 17 for the board’s formal  approval. “I will bring this to the board with my strongest recommendation for approval. The classified staff are the backbone of the college and this agreement recognizes the essential contribution of our staff to PCC,” Rocha said.

“I also want to thank Julio personally, as well as the entire ISSU-CFT executive board and negotiating team for their leadership and hard work in making this happen. I applaud Julio for meeting with his entire membership, explaining the deal and putting it up for a vote.”

Huerta is a Computer Technical Support Specialist Assistant in the Information Technology Services department. Also representing ISSU-CFT on the negotiating team were Haroldine Gardner, who works in the Public Relations Office, and Gary Potts of Information Technology Services. The team also included Kevin Cronin, a field representative with the California Federation of Teachers representing AFT Local 6525.