News Releases
City College faculty walk out for “the college San Francisco deserves”
Unfair Labor Practices strike calls for rebuilding the college, not gutting it
San Francisco—At City College campuses across the city, 500 faculty walked picket lines beginning at 8 am today to protest the district administration’s unfair labor practices in contract negotiations. They were joined by their students and community supporters on behalf of a broad, accessible college, a vision competing with the college administration’s stated plan to “realign” the San Francisco Community College District by reducing course offerings over the next few years by 26%.
Faculty Stand Up for City College and the Education San Francisco Deserves
Union press conference announces one-day unfair labor
practices strike
San Francisco—City College of San Francisco faculty, students and
community supporters announced at a Chinatown campus press
conference today that no classes will be held tomorrow at all
nine City College of San Francisco campuses. However, they said,
faculty will still be on campus. Instead of teaching, they’ll be
walking picket lines in the first-ever strike of 1500
instructors, librarians, and counselors represented by American
Federation of Teachers Local 2121. The unfair labor practices
strike is the union’s response to more than a year of
unsuccessful negotiations between the faculty union and college
administration and occurs after the administration has engaged in
numerous unfair labor practices, including bad faith bargaining
and attempting to go around the union’s elected negotiations
team.
Appeals Court Overturns Vergara Lawsuit
Educators Applaud Appellate Ruling in Meritless Vergara Lawsuit
LOS ANGELES —In a sweeping victory for students and educators, the California Court of Appeal today reversed a lower court decision in the deeply flawed Vergara v. California lawsuit. The unanimous appellate opinion is a stinging rebuke to Judge Rolf M. Treu’s poorly-reasoned ruling, and to the allegations made and millions of dollars spent by wealthy anti-union ducation reformers” to bypass voters, parents, and the legislature with harmful education policy changes. The reversal affirms the arguments of educators, civil rights groups, legals cholars and education policy experts that the state statutes affirming educator rights do not harm students.
Statement from CFT on the recent vote to increase the state’s minimum wage
Higher Minimum Wage Will Help Millions
“Today, California lawmakers passed legislation that will raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour in the coming years. This is an important step and a common sense development that will improve the lives of millions of Californians currently struggling to make ends meet in an economy that too often seems rigged in favor of the haves at the sacrifice of working men and women. We applaud those who voted in favor of this bill.
Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Working People
Statement from CFT President Joshua Pechthalt
Friedrichs Decision a Blow to Corporate Special Interests
“Earlier today, working men and women across this country heard some welcome news: The United States Supreme Court ruled 4-4 in the Friedrichs v. CTA lawsuit.
Board of Governors Votes to Reform Accrediting Agency
CFT leadership applauds courageous change in accreditation
SACRAMENTO, MARCH 21, 2016 – In an historic vote in Sacramento today, the California Community Colleges Board of Governors voted unanimously to reform its current accrediting agency, the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC), and begin to establish a new model for fair accrediting practices with a new agency.
CC presidents move to reform, then leave ACCJC
Statement from CFT president Joshua Pechthalt
CFT applauds growing momentum for accreditor’s ouster
“Today California moved another step closer to reforming the broken accreditation system for California’s community colleges. With a more than 90% vote earlier this week to reform the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC), while preparing at the same time to move to another accreditor, community college presidents struck a decisive blow to ACCJC’s fading hopes of maintaining the unacceptable status quo.
CFT Convention Delegates March, Arrested in Civil Disobedience Action for “the Education Californians Deserve”
Show of unity with CCSF faculty union
SAN FRANCISCO – On Friday, dozens of educators were arrested following a march and rally calling for “the public education that all Californians deserve” while protesting the hard line taken by City College of San Francisco’s administration in contract negotiations with CCSF’s faculty union, AFT 2121. The show of unity came on the first day of the annual statewide convention for the California Federation of Teachers.
L.A. Trial for Meritless Lawsuit Seeking to Eradicate Teachers’ Professional Rights Begins Today, Wastes Taxpayers’ Dollars and Time
Lawsuit does not improve student learning and hurts students, demonizes teachers
LOS ANGELES — One day after nearly 1,000 educators denounced the Vergara v. the State of California lawsuit, opening arguments begin today in Los Angeles County Superior Court. This meritless lawsuit, which seeks to eradicate teachers’ professional rights, highlights the wrong problems, proposes the wrong solutions, and follows the wrong process while doing nothing to improve student learning. This is yet another attempt by the usual corporate special interests to undermine the teaching profession and push their agenda on California public schools and students.
California Educators Appeal Decision in Meritless Vergara Lawsuit
Civil Rights Icon Dolores Huerta joins educators and community supporters in urging court to overturn flawed decision for the sake of all students
LOS ANGELES —Attorneys representing more than 400,000 members of the California Teachers Association and California Federation of Teachers appeared in the US Court of Appeal today in downtown Los Angeles, to ask that the June 2014 ruling in the deceptive and meritless Vergara v. State of California be overturned for the sake of California’s six million students.
CFT Statement Prior to Governor’s Budget Proposal
Proposition 30: The Elephant in the Room
Thanks to Proposition 30, California is moving in the right direction. Strong state revenues have provided Governor Brown and the state legislature the opportunity to increase access to education and improve the quality of life for millions of Californians over the past few years.
UTLA Votes to Invest in Union, Public Education
Statement from CFT President Joshua Pechthalt
Members Overwhelmingly Support Dues Increase
“On Wednesday, our sisters and brothers in United Teachers Los Angeles voted overwhelmingly to support their union and to lead the fight to preserve and improve public education in the second largest school district in the country. Over 14,000 of UTLA’s members participated in the vote, with 82 percent in favor of a dues increase. We applaud UTLA’s members and leaders for taking this courageous action.
Governor’s State of the State: Progress, Challenge of Inequality
Statement from CFT President Joshua Pechthalt
Clear Case for Prop 30 Renewal
“In his State of the State address delivered earlier today, Governor Jerry Brown spoke eloquently of California’s strengths and challenges in the coming year. He underscored the state’s significant fiscal gains following a period of deep economic recession, but did not shy away from directly addressing the growing disparity between the top 1 (and .1) percent and everyone else that threatens the California Dream.
Californians Testify at D.C. Hearing to Replace Accreditor
Students, faculty and elected officials say, “ACCJC has to go!”
Washington, D.C. — Thirty community college faculty and students today were joined by elected officials and the President of the California Federation of Teachers in a Washington D.C. hearing to testify about the urgent need to remove the current accreditor (Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, or ACCJC) for the state’s community colleges and replace it with one capable of fair and competent accreditation practices.
Key Steps Taken to Remove Unreliable ACCJC — California’s Community College Accreditor
State Board directs Chancellor to implement plan for a new model
Walnut, CA – The Community College Board of Governors unanimously passed a resolution declaring that the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) “no longer meets the current and anticipated needs of California community colleges.”
Faculty leaders voice support for task force recommendation of a new accreditor
Commentary provided during ACCJC’s Bakersfield “listening session”
Faculty leaders from nearby colleges descended on Bakersfield College to provide comments at the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior College’s “listening session” earlier today. Faculty were represented on the Community College Chancellor’s Task Force on Accreditation.
Community College Board of Governors to send message to US Department of Education: “California needs a new accreditor”
Yesterday the California Community College Board of Governors (BOG) directed State Community Chancellor Brice Harris to send his Accreditation Task Force’s Report, issued two weeks ago, to the United States Department of Education (DOE).
Civil Rights Groups, Researchers, Legal Scholars, and Top Educators Urge Reversal of Deeply Flawed Vergara Ruling
Amicus “Friend of the Court” Briefs Filed Today
Spotlight Harm to Students and Failings of Decision
Los Angeles—Some of the nation’s top legal scholars, education policy experts, civil rights advocates, award-winning teachers, school board members and administrators filed five amici curiae, or “friend of the court,” briefs with the California Court of Appeal today.
Court dismisses “Bain v. CTA”
Unions’ right to determine membership withstands corporate legal assault
Los Angeles—U.S. District Court judge Stephen V. Wilson today announced the dismissal of “April Bain et al v. California Teachers Association et al,” the latest example of corporate interests reinterpreting the First Amendment to silence the collective voice of the Nation’s working men and women and undermine the democratic process within unions.
Statement from Los Rios College Federation of Teachers on Shooting at Sacramento City College
“We want to express our support for our colleagues at Sacramento City College following the tragic shooting of three students on campus that resulted in one fatality. We extend our sincere condolences to those students and their families. Both the Los Rios Faculty Union and Senate leadership agree that we need to remain vigilant in our efforts to ensure campus safety and will work collaboratively to discuss further steps in light of yesterday’s tragic occurrence.