(March 17, 2020)
Dear Faculty and Staff of CSU Monterey Bay,
Leadership from the California State University Employees Union (CSUEU) and California Faculty Association (CFA) chapters at CSU Monterey Bay recently held a joint (virtual) meeting, and as a result, decided to issue a joint statement regarding some of the most pressing concerns related to the campus’ response to the COVID-19 emergency. These are some of the concerns that we have raised with management:
Ensuring that all staff, faculty, and student workers continue to be fully compensated during this tumultuous time without any disruption in benefits.
Ensuring that employees are treated fairly and compassionately with regard to mandatory time off or telecommuting.
How telecommuting policies and workload agreements are written and enforced.
How managers determine who are "essential" personnel.
Unclear or mixed messages about work-from-home agreements; staff have been told by the University that working from home is voluntary, meanwhile employees are instructed that they must work from home.
CFA members are concerned that the University is setting unrealistic expectations for remote work assignments.
CFA members are concerned with how this semester’s disruption will impact student/department level evaluations, faculty appointments, and RTP.
CFA members are concerned with the impact of this virtual transition on workload.
CFA and CSUEU are deeply concerned with childcare support for working parents and caretakers.
Staff are concerned about being required to work remotely and being held liable for the University equipment they are using.
Staff are concerned about working on networks at home that are not secure.
Both Unions are gravely concerned that the University has largely bypassed faculty and staff Unions, without proper consultation, when creating and implementing plans for the campus and campus community.
Given that campus management has failed to adequately communicate with university stakeholders about the planning process during this emergency situation, we can only make assumptions based on the very limited information received. This lack of communication makes it challenging to adequately represent our bargaining units during this emergency.
However, as a result of our repeated requests for collaboration during this crisis, we have finally been given the opportunity to meet with President Ochoa in a joint Labor Council meeting on Wednesday, March 18th to discuss the emergency COVID-19 plan for CSUMB. We will provide further information to all members of our university community when it becomes available.
Actions you can take:
Review the CDC website on how to protect yourself.
If you have been designated as "essential personnel" required to remain on campus, please email president@csueumb.org or vlopezlittleton@calfac.org to keep your Union informed.
If you have any specific questions or concerns you want raised with President Ochoa at the Labor Council meeting on Wednesday, for staff, email president@csueumb.org and for faculty, email vlopezlittleton@calfac.org or modonnell@calfac.org respectively.
Confirm you are an enrolled union member to help strengthen our advocacy and ensure your voice is being heard.
For faculty, make sure you are checking the CFA COVID-19 statewide web page for up-to-date announcements and subscribe to CFA Headlines for daily updates.
We want you to know that we are working diligently to ensure your rights and benefits are protected. In these difficult times we ask that you prioritize taking care of yourselves, your families and your communities. If you need us or have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to us. We are here for you. We are in this together.
In Union and Solidarity,
CSUEU Monterey Bay Chapter 322 - https://www.csueumb.org/
To join CSUEU, sign up at https://www.csueu.org/join
CFA-CSU Monterey Bay - https://www.calfac.org/csu-monterey-bay
If you are not yet a member of CFA, we need you! BECOME A CFA MEMBER TODAY
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