Newsroom

Article staff shortage
Palomar classified leaders with CCE leaderslarge group of Berkeley classified employees with CCE leadersCCE President Carl Williams talks to Palomar membersPalomar members at table with swag

Classified leaders hit the road to meet locals
Listening tour leads to greater understanding, solidarity

After more than a year of Delta and Omicron surges and other COVID-19 pandemic obstacles, officers of the CFT Council of Classified Employees embarked on a statewide listening tour of AFT local unions representing classified employees.

“There will never be a perfect time, so we just hit the road,” said CCE President Carl Williams. “Our members have heard what we have to say. Now they want to be heard.”

Article retiree chapters
Retirees comb the local filesRetiree Chapter President Ann KillebrewLocal President Malaika Finkelstein at a white boardretirees walking on San Francisco Bay

Elders Speak! project preserves union history for future generations
AFT Local 2121 marks 50th anniversary with oral history

By Bill Shields

Janitors organize live onstage, in multiple languages. A domestic worker ponders the meaning of life as she mimes ironing clothes. Dancing hotel workers tell how they won a good contract. These stories emerged from an oral history project called Work Tales produced by the Labor and Community Studies Department at City College of San Francisco. I spent 25 years teaching in this department.

Article Elections 2022 endorsements SPI
Primary Election in red, white and blue

CFT endorses Gavin Newsom, Tony Thurmond for June 7 primary
Find union endorsements for the statewide Primary Election

With the June 7 Statewide Primary Election fast approaching, the 2022 election season is fully underway. CFT has been preparing by conducting candidate interviews for the state’s top offices and legislative districts around the state. All statewide constitutional offices will be on the ballot, and CFT has endorsed a candidate for each seat.

Article

Why is Trouble in the Henhouse our  #1 bestselling curricula?
Curricula Review

Trouble in the Hen House

Trouble in the Henhouse
By Phyllis Chiu
Illustrated by Jos Sances
2002, 22 pp
Grades: K-5

By Bill Morgan

One of the real classics of social justice books for kids was written by our own Phyllis Chiu, who was at the time an elementary teacher in Los Angeles. Chiu was also a member of the CFT Labor in the Schools Committee, which has produced a bumper crop of labor (and now climate justice) materials for progressive-minded teachers to use with their classes. The name of Chiu’s booklet is Trouble in the Henhouse, and among all of the committee’s publications, it is the #1 bestseller.

Article state budget coronavirus
graduation cap on top of lots of cash

CFT analyzes governor’s proposed budget for 2022-23
Research Brief

Governor Newsom introduced a $286.4 billion budget proposal for 2022-23 on January 10. The proposed budget is 9% larger than last year’s record high budget, largely because of tax receipts that were even higher than expected. The governor’s office is anticipating a $21 billion discretionary surplus for 2022-23 and this includes billions more for education.

Download the Research Brief

Article AFT part-time faculty PT campaign

New AFT report shows pandemic wreaked havoc on nation’s adjunct faculty
Transition to remote learning, impact of virus lead to declines in job security, increased reliance on public assistance

WASHINGTON — A new national adjunct faculty survey from the AFT underlines the brutal economic reality faced by millions of contingent and adjunct faculty at the nation’s colleges and universities — and illustrates how the pandemic further eroded job security and bolstered the need for public help.

Article Wealth Tax coronavirus

CFT continues push to tax extreme wealth in California
Assemblymember Alex Lee re-introduces legislation to tax billionaires

This week Assemblymember Alex Lee (D-San Jose) re-introduced his bill, now titled AB 2289, that seeks to impose a tax on the extreme wealth of the richest Californians. The bill would impact approximately 17,000 multi-millionaires and billionaires in California, which is 0.07% of the total taxpayers in our state.

CFT is a proud sponsor of this bill — that would raise more than $22 billion in revenue annually — and will be working closely with Assemblymember Lee as it makes its way through the state Legislature.

Article part-time faculty PT campaign
members on zoom

Part-time faculty step up to win the healthcare they deserve
Dozens of faculty testify before state legislative committees

Dozens of CFT members testified this week in front of two different budget subcommittees of the California Legislature to urge our elected leaders in Sacramento to support Governor Newsom’s $200 million proposal in the state budget to fund healthcare for part-time faculty in California’s community colleges.

Following the launch of CFT’s campaign for part-time faculty healthcare last fall and a successful letter campaign, the governor included the $200 million in his January budget proposal.

Article coronavirus

Worker action extends COVID Paid Sick Leave
Retroactive to January 1, 2022 and sunsets September 30, 2022

CFT and our labor partners have fought hard to reinstate COVID-19 paid sick leave. On February 9, Governor Newsom signed the COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave legislation (Senate Bill 114) into law. This is a huge win that will help keep our workplaces and communities safe. 

Supplemental Paid Sick Leave became available starting February 19 — ten days after the legislation was signed. Here is a summary of what is included in the new law:

  • This leave is retroactively applied to January 1, 2022, and will sunset on September 30, 2022.
Article state budget coronavirus

Education sees another increase in governor’s state budget proposal
Legislative Update

Governor Newsom proposed significant increases for education and a 5.33% Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) in his state budget for 2022-23 released January 8. In his proposal, the governor addressed five concurrent state crises — COVID-19, climate change, inequality, homelessness, and public safety — several of which are reflected in the education budget. This budget is a preliminary proposal subject to negotiations with the Legislature and will be revised in May, with its final passage in June.

Download the Legislative Update

Article state budget coronavirus

LAO predicts $31 billion budget surplus for 2022-23
Research Brief

Each November, the Legislative Analyst’s Office (the non-partisan advisor for the state Legislature) prepares a fiscal outlook in anticipation of the state budget process that kicks off in January with the governor’s budget proposal.

    Overall, revenues are growing at historic rates and the LAO estimates the state will have a $31 billion surplus to allocate in 2022‑23. The Proposition 98 guarantee for schools and community colleges is estimated to be $11.6 billion (12.4% above the 2021-22 enacted budget). LAO estimates $9.5 billion will be available for new commitments and $10.2 billion will be available for one-time spending.

    UC lecturers’ victory inspires broad movement for equity across higher education
    CFT wages a campaign for part-time faculty in the community colleges  

    By Jeffery M. Freitas, CFT President

    For about three years the University Council-AFT engaged in protracted negotiations on behalf of lecturers in their unit. Their aims have always been about fairness — better working conditions for lecturers and improved learning conditions for students. Their fight has been about not only winning economic and contractual gains for members, but gaining professional respect and recognition for their teaching at the University of California. Their campaign has been a true member-driven effort, rooted in years of organizing by the statewide local that represents both continuing lecturers and librarians, led by their president, Mia McIver, and a committed negotiations team.