April 8, 2019 in Board Meetings, Membership
President Report to CSUEU Board of Directors | March 9, 2019
Over the past year, through unified commitment from everyone on this Board, I am proud to report that we have lowered our unrestricted spending and CSUEU is economically and financially meeting our post Janus goal to be solvent.
You might recall that during the 2017-2018 budget cycle, we had exhausted our allocated statewide 5.11d leave in the first six months and by Jan. 1, 2018 we were forced to use 5.13 leave for the March and June BOD’s. FYI, when we use 5.13 leave, it costs our Union one day’s salary plus 42% of their benefits, which averages about $308 a day. By implementing smart cost-saving measures, such as holding more conferences via Zoom rather than face-to-face meetings, we are now eight months into the current fiscal year and our March BOD was 88% 5.11d with only 12% being 5.13 leave, which saved us $42,000 this year. Also, during the same 2017-2018 budget cycle we used over $151,294 dollars of 5.13 leave, and this year the amount was $96,626.00, a savings of over $54,688. It is my belief that these savings, achieved through living more frugally, are better used for building our Union through additional training for our leaders, recruiting non-members and representing our members.
Also, I would be remiss in not mentioning the cost- saving measures contributing to our union financial stability by our VP for Finance and the Finance Committee.
COMMITTEE UPDATES Organizing: Our membership rate is currently at 72.9. This number is lower than in previous reports, in major part because CSEA made significant adjustments to their report on how they calculate membership after Janus. Under the previous method, a member, who held two jobs with the CSU, was counted as two members and conversely the same for a non-member. Our reports were not accurate in the past. We now have better data to measure our union growth going forward. VP for Organizing Pete Rauch has been working on developing a training program which includes a New Member Experience training that teaches chapter leaders to figure out who is new to their chapter, how to find them, and how to recruit them. He continues to be on leave working with SEIU to develop a solid and healthy New Member Experience to increase our membership and renewal percentages. He served as President during my December vacation and attended with me or in place of me, at SEIU State Council and CSEA Board meetings. He continues to assist Catherine Hutchinson in her role as acting Executive Director and remains a member of the Legislative Committee.
Communications: All news related to Steps Bill AB 369 draw the highest level of membership engagement, whether the news is communicated via email or posted on Facebook. Other content that garners high open-rates through email or broad posting on Facebook include coverage of: Gov. Newsom’s budget proposal, Lt. Governor’s inauguration, Paradise wildfire in November and the subsequent survey of affected campuses. It is worth noting that Chapter-specific news also generates strong statewide interest, such as Unit 5 at SDSU winning a 4% IRP after having their night shift eliminated.
For the remainder of this March BOD report, I would like to focus on four items which are “carry-over” items of significance from my report in November: Headquarters relocation, Steps Bill, Public Employee Orientation Law (AB 119), and the Senior Labor Relations Representation opening.
*Headquarters relocation: We have moved into 120 K St. in Old Sacramento and are fully operational with the exception of having the floor resealed. The desks, chairs, furniture, telephones and flat-screen monitors are all in place. We have dedicated space for various trainings, whether in-person or via Zoom.
*Steps Bill AB 369: We are sponsoring AB 369, which is identical to last year’s AB 1231, and once again authored by Assemblymember Dr. Shirley Weber. This year our bill has two co-sponsors: the Teamsters and SEIU State Council. The Legislative Committee, with chair Vicky McLeod and legislative director David Balla-Hawkins, has started 2019 with some extremely strong legislative-related activities, attending the Lt. Gov. inauguration, meetings with Dr. Shirley Weber and the Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, coordinating on-campus visits with Eleni Kounalakis at San Marcos to discuss the problems of salary inversion with Lande Ajose of Gov. Newsom’s office. Our first AB 369 activity is a letter-writing campaign to Assembly members, which was kicked off on Feb. 27. Our letters are due to Chapter leaders by March 20, and will be delivered to the State Capitol in time for the first public hearing by the Assembly Committee on Higher Education, scheduled for April 2.
*AB 119 Public Employee Orientation Law: After inexcusable delays by the CSU, we are finally making progress. Our Bargaining Team will be holding meet-and-confers in April to engage the CSU into complying with state law governing new employee orientations and union involvement. By law, unions must have access to new employee orientations and the employer must provide the union with each employee’s contact information, their name, job title, location, etc.
*Senior Labor Relations Representative: We have completed the interview process for three candidates and this position was filled. I just announced that Brian Young is our new Senior Labor Relations Representative. This position is critical to our efforts to get the CSU in compliance with AB 119 and will also serve a vital role for our Bargaining Team as we head into 2020 contract negotiations.
These four above “carry-over” items reflect this Union’s commitment to resolve “loose ends” and not let important matters linger without proper and successful resolution.
