eNewsletter - July 3, 2008

2008 Union Officer Election: Call for Volunteers to Serve on Nominating Committee
Elections for the eleven Local 21 Union Officers (also known as the Executive Committee) will be held this coming November, 2008. In accordance with Article XV of the Local 21 bylaws, the Executive Committee shall appoint a seven member Nominating Committee (representing seven different chapters) to compile a list of at least one available nominee for each of the eleven Officer positions.

The Executive Committee will be considering the makeup of the Nominating Committee at their July 17, 2008 meeting with a goal of having a committee in place by Labor Day. Nominating Committee members should expect to spend 15-20 hours completing the committee's work which includes two to three meetings, conference calls, and outreach calls to possible nominees. Committee meetings will be held at lunchtime or immediately following work. In conformance with a resolution passed by the Executive Committee at their June 19, 2008 meeting, no one considering a run for one of the eleven Local Union offices can be appointed to the Nominating Committee.

Think you might like to serve on the Nominating Committee? Please send an email expressing your interest to Union Secretary Bonnie Bompart, and copy Local 21 staffer Sarah Clark no later than Wednesday, July 16th. Be sure to include your chapter's name in the email (e.g., City of Hayward, SLCEA, etc.).




Oakland Members Demonstrate over Contract Expiration
At midnight on June 30, 2008, over 100,000 East Bay workers' employment contracts expired. Local 21 and several other labor unions convened for a "Midnight" march and rally organized by the Alameda Labor Council. Hundreds of marchers visited the site of six different employers in downtown Oakland with expiring contracts, including the City of Oakland where over 900 Local 21 members, as well as employees represented by three other unions, have experienced numerous delays and challenges in bargaining with the City.

Andrea Turner, Local 21's City of Oakland Supervisors and Managers' Chapter Political Issues Coordinator, addressed rally-goers at City Hall just 54 minutes before Local 21's contract with the City expired. She spoke of the need for all East Bay employees to unite as workers, rather than continuing as employees facing individual battles.

Want to see Local 21 members making news? Click here for the KTVU Channel 2 News report on the event and hear Local 21's Oakland Supervisors and Managers' Chapter Membership Director Tom Manley comment on the empowerment he feels from being gathered with so many people working toward a shared goal. After the event Manley elaborated, "It was very inspiring, exciting, and thought provoking to see union members striving together for health care, pensions, and livable wages while loudly voicing their concerns. I felt supported by all these unionists in the common struggle."

The success of the event could not have been possible without the efforts and participation of over 60 Local 21 members from the City and Port of Oakland, and all the City of Oakland CAT team Representatives who helped make our voices heard!




Cuts to CCSF Program Reduce Health Services for Children with Disabilities
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed draconian cuts of nearly 40% to a critical City and County of San Francisco program that provides occupational and physical therapy for children with cerebral palsy, spina bifida, muscular dystrophy, and juvenile arthritis at San Francisco schools. As schools do not have permanent, on-site therapists, any cuts to the program would result in reduced treatment, equipment, and delays to or partial elimination of services for many of the state's most vulnerable population - children with physical disabilities. Local 21 is working with its lobbyists in Sacramento to have some program funds reinstated.

All San Francisco members and residents are urged to send letters to the California Department of Health Care Services calling for smaller reductions to the California Children's Services Medical Therapy Program. Any necessary cuts should mitigate the impact on children by ensuring that no county's funding is reduced more than 4.5%. Letters should be sent to:
Sandra Shewry, Director
California Department of Health Care Services
P.O. Box 997413, MS0006
Sacramento, CA 95899-7413



VTA Members Launch Letter Writing Campaign to Save Transportation Dollars
With more cuts to the State budget, Governor Schwarzenegger proposed a $437 million reduction in the State Assistance Program (STA), which is utilized by transportation agencies including Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) to support operating funds and the construction of capital projects. This will cut STA assistance to transportation agencies in California from $743 million to $306 million - less than half of its annual funding level, representing a major step backwards in the State's overall goals of reducing congestion and conserving energy.

Local 21 members in the VTA Transportation Authority Engineers and Architects Chapter (TAEA) have sprung into action to ensure that balancing the state budget does not result in sacrificing public transit at a time when oil prices are at their highest. While Local 21 has been working with Local 21's Sacramento lobbyists, TAEA members started a letter writing campaign to the California STA budget committee, as well as State Senate and Assembly delegates from Santa Clara County. Since then, action has been taken by the Assembly and Senate to increase the level of funding. The STA budget committee will meet shortly, although any changes to the funding level will not be finalized until the State budget is formally adopted.

If you are a VTA employee or Santa Clara County resident who is interested in expressing your concerns about cuts to transportation funding, email Local 21 Senior Representative Nancy Ostrowski for a sample letter. The effectiveness of the letter writing campaign could not have been possible without the dedication of VTA TAEA Chapter Officers Raj Sehdev and Marc De Long.




Fifteenth Annual LaborFest Connects Labor History to Present Struggles
July 5th is the 74th anniversary of "Bloody Thursday," when two maritime workers were killed by police during an attack on strikers. The event marks the beginning of the San Francisco general strike when thousands of workers shut down the City for fair wages and working conditions.

Since 1994, LaborFest has been held to institutionalize the Bay Area's history and culture of working people in an annual labor festival. The event begins every July 5th and continues through the end of the month, and features a variety of documentary films, historical walking and bike tours, speakers, and art exhibits.

LaborFest 2008 will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the New Deal, the 40th anniversary of the various social, cultural, and political movements that emerged from 1968, and this year's May Day events which were successfully celebrated by immigrant workers and members of the ILWU who closed California ports in protest of the US war in Iraq.

A full schedule of events can be found on LaborFest's website.




Contra Costa Water District Chapter Ratifies Retirement Improvement
Contra Costa Water District members unanimously ratified a small improvement to their pension formula on June 18. In May, Chapter President Doug Anderson and Local 21 Senior Representative Bob Britton met with the Water District's General Manager, Walter Bishop, to discuss a proposed increase to the retirement formula from 2.30% to 2.35% at age 55. Contrary to trends in other jurisdictions, this is the third time in recent years the District has been willing to move end-of-year budget savings into funding a retirement enhancement. The District also committed a portion of the budget savings to an account funding retiree medical insurance and non-carbon based energy production.




CEMU - Civil Engineering Management Chapter Settles Contract
After more than a year of bargaining, state mediation, and an Unfair Labor Practice Charge filed with PERB, Local 21's Alameda County Management Engineers (CEMU) Chapter has reached a tentative agreement with Alameda County. The Chapter voted overwhelmingly on June 23rd to approve the settlement which now goes to the Board of Supervisors for approval.

The negotiations were complicated by the County's insistence on no retroactivity to any salary increases, and that any raises would not be effective until the pay period following the second reading at the Board. In the end, the County agreed not to delay the increase until after the Board of Supervisors returned from their annual extended vacations following budget adoption, but agreement could not be reached to make the increases effective with the expiration of the previous MOU.

The settlement calls for a 3% salary increase effective June 29, 2008 and another 3% raise just one month later on July 27. Equity adjustments range from 3.5% to 5.28% for a small number of positions. Given the unknown status of the state budget and its impact on the County, members were happy to lock-in a two-year agreement despite the fact that it expires at the end of this coming fiscal year.




Save-The-Date! First Annual South Bay BBQ
Local 21 members from the City of San Jose's Association of Engineers and Architects, Santa Clara County's Engineers and Architects Association, the City of East Palo Alto, and Valley Transportation Authority Engineers and Architects will be hosting a South Bay chapters barbeque at Noon on Thursday July 17 in Los Gatos at the Gateway Pavilion, Vasona Lake County Park. The lunchtime event is open to all Local 21 South Bay members, and could not have been possible without the efforts of each Chapter's President. South Bay members should RSVP no later than Friday, July 11 to their Chapter President: John Mukhar of AEA, Ron Johnson of SCCEAA, Raj Sedhev of TAEA, and Marie McKenzie of EPA.




Scheduled Wage Increases Approaching for many Local 21 members
The start of a new fiscal year also means wage increases for many Local 21 members across the Bay Area. Some of the Local 21 chapters receiving raises effective June 28, 2008 through July 1, 2008 include:




L21 Express is the bi-weekly email publication of IFPTE Local 21. Local 21 represents more than 7,000 Bay Area professional public employees. Main Office Phone: 415.864.2100 South Bay Phone: 408.291.2200