Do the Right Thing for Students! Approve a Fair Contract For Faculty!
Interim Chancellor Dr. Melissa Moreno and the San Mateo Community College District Board of Trustees
To Interim Chancellor Dr. Melissa Moreno and the San Mateo County Community College District Board of Trustees : Do the Right Thing for Students! Approve a Fair Contract For Faculty.
San Mateo County Community College District faculty provide training and education vital to the success of our region. But for far too long, the district has failed to create an environment where faculty are adequately supported to guide students through their educational journey. We have been without a contract for 10 months now. This makes all of our lives more difficult and unnecessarily stressful. Is that really how you want to treat our district’s employees?
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Interim Chancellor Dr. Melissa Moreno and the San Mateo Community College District Board of Trustees
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To Interim Chancellor Dr. Melissa Moreno and the San Mateo County Community College District Board of Trustees : Do the Right Thing for Students! Approve a Fair Contract For Faculty.
San Mateo County Community College District faculty provide training and education vital to the success of our region. But for far too long, the district has failed to create an environment where faculty are adequately supported to guide students through their educational journey. We have been without a contract for 10 months now. This makes all of our lives more difficult and unnecessarily stressful. Is that really how you want to treat our district’s employees?
We urge SMCCD to agree to a fair contract as soon as possible that ensures:
Living Wages: We need an increase in wages that allows faculty to live in the area. San Mateo County has the highest property values in US. Since our district is a “Basic Aid/Community-supported” district, the county’s extremely high property values provide very substantial revenues for the district. The cost of living for our faculty is exorbitant. With the present rate of inflation, the current salary offer from the district asks us to take a pay cut.
Affordable Healthcare for All Faculty: The district must offer adjunct faculty healthcare that meets their needs. The current situation, in which adjunct faculty often have minimal healthcare, poses a risk to faculty health and to the wellness of our campuses and communities. The state has approved substantial funding for this purpose, and our district should take advantage of it to provide adequate health care for our valuable part time faculty.
Equitable Pay for Adjunct Faculty: The San Mateo County Community College District could not operate without our highly educated, incredibly impactful adjunct workforce, who make up a majority of our faculty. Yet our district pays adjunct instructors proportionally less than their full-time colleagues. And adjunct instructors in our district are the lowest paid among the four Bay Area “Basic Aid”/”Community-supported” community college districts. The district must pay all adjuncts fairly so they can continue to serve our students.
Negotiations in Good Faith: District negotiators have been slow to non-responsive to our faculty proposals. We have been in negotiations for 10 months, giving our all to our students without the support of a new contract. The San Mateo Community College District is committed to equity. The SMCCCD Board of Trustees is an elected body with a duty to live up to the district’s mission: Trustees must respond to faculty proposals for equitable campuses by negotiating in good faith.