Unit 3 Bargaining Update for Friday, August 16th, 2019
Unit 3 Bargaining Team Finishes Negotiations with Five Tentative Agreements; Win on Work Assignments Notice

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After two months of hard work and long hours, the Unit 3 bargaining team signed their last five tentative agreements (TA) with the state at their unit table on Friday August 16. The new TAs cover a wide range of issues including recruitment and retention, off-site teacher preparation, and work assignment notification.

Unit 3 teachers working in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) have often expressed frustration concerning assignments that lack adequate, or in some cases, any, notification. The new language will:

  • Require that CDCR management provide notice, in writing, whenever there is a work assignment change for an employee, and an explanation around why the change was needed.

This written notice and explanation requirement is based on a provision that has been useful for Unit 3 teachers working in California’s special schools.

The Unit 3 team also signed TAs that:

  • Clarify the hours of work as it relates to Off-Site Teacher Preparation, specifically for those working in Unit 3.
  • Reduce the number of hours it takes to get in-lieu credit, while doubling the number of credits you can get in a year (Credits of Salary Advancement).
  • Roll-over Recruitment and Retention and Education Leave provision in the current contract.

Robert Holtz, Unit 3 Carpentry Instructor was particularly proud about the agreement on work assignment notification finally applying to CDCR teachers. “This provision is a big deal for Unit 3 folks working in CDCR. It mirrors the same language that our teachers in the special schools have around this issue and I think it will go a long way towards establishing more professionalism with the way teachers are treated in CDCR.”

While the work of our Unit 3 team has been impactful, some proposals remain to be worked out. Negotiations continue at the master table all this week.