Unit 21
Educational Consultants & Librarians
Recent Updates from Unit 21:
“Bargaining Unit 21 is proud to have a full bargaining unit negotiating council (BUNC) for the first time in over 10 years, and our collective efforts have built supermajority (67% and up) BU 21 membership rates at more than half (17 out of 32) of the worksites where Bargaining Unit 21 workers work, achieving 100% membership at 11 of them!”
Who We are
The educational consultants and librarians of Unit 21 includes consultants who work with educational programs from pre-kindergarten through post-secondary or higher education, and the state librarians and archivists.
📧 For general questions regarding Unit 21, e-mail [email protected]
Unit 21 Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC)
GeoPay Task Force Presents and Releases Report
Unit 21 Working Hours and Professional Responsibility
Our contract is the agreement between SEIU Local 1000 and the State that outlines our pay, our benefits, and our rights! Our bargaining team is gearing up to negotiate a new contract and what we win depends on how strong and united we are.
Here are the priorities our Bargaining Unit 21 team is bringing to the table:
Protect Our FLSA Exempt Status
- BU 21 classifications meet federal criteria for professional exemption under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.
- We’re demanding explicit contract language affirming BU 21 classifications as FLSA exempt as well as workload protections and compensation integrity.
Competitive Salaries That Reflect Our Professional Expertise
- Our classifications require advanced degrees and high-level expertise, yet compensation does not reflect market value.
- We’re demanding significant General Salary Increases (GSIs), Special Salary Adjustments (SSA), and recruitment & retention incentives.
Telework: Modern, Flexible, and Equitable Work Policies
- We’re demanding default telework for eligible duties, telework equity across departments, and telework support including State-provided equipment and secure technology as well as stipends for internet and home office costs.
19.19.21(a) needs to stay – Sign The Petition
19.19.21(a): Professional Salaried Protections
Bargaining Unit 21 (BU 21) workers are professional salaried employees, as designated in section 19.19.21 of our contract agreement. We are not hourly workers and are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA) which grants labor protections for standard work schedules, including overtime pay for 40+ hour work weeks. Additionally, we shall not be charged for any paid leave for absences in less than whole day increments. Because of our fluctuating, non-standard work schedules, we require a different set of labor protections. That’s where 19.19.21(a) comes in: it helps guide supervisors and BU 21 employees on how to apply 19.19.21 and outlines the need for flexibility, ongoing, two-way communication to manage various, fluctuating work requirements, and professional responsibility and judgement.
Without 19.19.21(a), this unequal application of 19.19.21 policy will inevitably worsen working conditions for BU 21 workers.
Those who sign on to this letter demand that 19.19.21(a) needs to stay in the SEIU Local 1000 Master Agreement for our next contract.
Unit 21 Bargaining Updates
Master Table Update: July 30, 2026
July 30, 2026Many members have asked what happens now that our Contract expired 30 days ago. The answer is simple: bargaining continues. Our bargaining team is still at the table, but the State is refusing to bargain fairly. That's why last week...
Master Table Update: July 23, 2026
July 23, 2026Another week of bargaining has come and gone. While we've reached a few additional tentative agreements that improve working conditions, the State still refuses to move on the issues that matter most to state workers. Today marks 23...
SEIU Local 1000 Files Unfair Practice Charge – July 22, 2026
SEIU Local 1000 filed an Unfair Practice Charge on Wednesday, July 22 alleging the State failed to bargain fairly over wages, benefits and working conditions for the state workers who keep California running Our Bargaining Team brought forward...
Master Table Update: July 16, 2026
July 16, 2026Over the past two weeks, our bargaining team has continued meeting with the State at both the Master and Unit bargaining tables. While we've reached a few additional tentative agreements that improve working conditions, the State still...
UNIT 21 BARGAINING UPDATE – Friday, July 17, 2026
Bargaining Unit 21, the unit representing our Educational Consultants, Child Development Consultants, Librarians, Archivists, and Specialists, met with the State on Wednesday, July 15, to continue advocating for Unit 21 priorities in our...
Master Table Update: July 9, 2026
July 9, 2026📹 Hear Updates Directly from Our Chief NegotiatorOur bargaining team is still at the table and our priorities haven't changed. We're continuing to fight for priorities that members identified: from fair pay, affordable healthcare and...
Master Table Update: June 30, 2026
June 30, 2026📹 Hear Updates Directly from Our Chief NegotiatorToday, just hours before our Contract expires, the State finally responded to our fair pay proposals. Waiting until the final hours to respond to proposals we submitted weeks ago is no...
Master Table Update: June 25, 2026
June 25, 2026 With our current contract set to expire on June 30, our bargaining team continues fighting for the priorities that matter most to state workers: fair pay, affordable healthcare and telework policies that work for both workers and...
Master Table Update: June 18, 2026
June 18, 2026 Contract negotiations are heating up. Let's keep the pressure on the State to deliver. We are fighting for Fair Pay, Affordable Healthcare, Secure Retirement and Telework that Works. At the center of that fight is our proposal for a...
Master Table Update: June 11, 2026
June 11, 2026 The fight for our next contract continues. As Master Table bargaining moves forward, our message to the State remains clear: state workers deserve Fair Pay, Affordable Healthcare, Secure Retirement, and Telework that Works. The State...
Master Table Update: June 4, 2026
June 4, 2026 The fight for our next contract is underway. What happens at Master Table bargaining will impact the nearly 100,000 state workers across California represented by SEIU Local 1000. Here's what you need to know: for months, we've heard...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update – Thursday, May 28, 2026
Refreshed from a meaningful Memorial Day holiday, Bargaining Unit 21, the unit representing our Educational Consultants, Child Development Consultants, Librarians, Archivists, and Specialists, met with the State on the morning of Wednesday,...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update – Thursday, May 21, 2026
Bargaining Unit 21, the unit representing our Educational Consultants, Child Development Consultants, Librarians, Archivists, and Specialists, met with the State on Monday, May 18, and again on Wednesday, May 20, to...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update – Thursday, May 14, 2026
Bargaining Unit 21, the unit representing our Educational Consultants, Child Development Consultants, Librarians, Archivists, and Specialists, met with the State on Monday, May 11, and again on Wednesday, May 13, to resume...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update – Thursday, May 7, 2026
Bargaining Unit 21, the unit representing our Educational Consultants, Child Development Consultants, Librarians, Archivists, and Specialists, met again with the State on Monday, May 4, and Wednesday, May 6, to resume...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update – Thursday, April 30, 2026
Bargaining Unit 21, the unit representing our Educational Consultants, Librarians, Archivists, and Specialists, met with the State twice this week: on Monday, April 27 and Wednesday, April 29 for unit-specific negotiations....
Sunshine Meeting with CalHR: January 14, 2026
January 14, 2026 Your bargaining team just completed our sunshine meeting with CalHR – our first step on the road to our next contract! In this meeting, we made it clear to CalHR that our goal is to negotiate a fair and equitable contract shaped by...
Unit 21 Working Hours and Professional Responsibility
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a federal law enacted in 1938 to protect the rights of full-time and part-time workers. As a Unit 21 employee, you qualify for exempt status under what is termed the professional exemption, intended for...
Bargaining Unit 21 Virtual Townhall
Starting on Wednesday, February 19, 2025, the Bargaining Unit (BU) 21 District Bargaining Unit Representatives (DBURs) began holding meetings with BU 21 employees regarding the 2026 contract negotiations. You are being invited to the next meeting...
Update on Appendix S – 12.1 Business and Travel Expenses [New]
SEIU Local 1000 met with CalHR on July 22, 2024, and again on September 17, 2024, regarding implementing “New” Appendix S - 12.1 Business and Travel Expenses. As negotiated last year, the Business and Travel Expenses section (12.1) will be updated...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update for Friday, August 9th, 2019
Local 1000’s Unit 21 reached agreement on 10 “roll-over” contract provisions on Friday, August 9, to close out the remainder of their non-economic proposals. In the process, the bargaining team was able to preserve a number of vital provisions in...
Unit 21 Alert: Bargaining Update – May 15
Today, Local 1000 returned to the negotiating table to meet with representatives from the state and continue bargaining for our new contract. The state spent the last two weeks reviewing the proposals we gave them in April - 29 Master Table...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update for Wednesday, August 7th, 2019
Our Unit 21 bargaining team made good progress at the table on Tuesday in their pursuit of protecting and advancing the rights of the Educational Consultants and Librarians they represent. One tentative agreement that was signed empowers Unit 21...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update for Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Unit 21 went to the table on Tuesday to continue their fight for fair wages and better professional opportunities for Educational Consultants and Librarians across California. Our bargaining team brought in representatives from the California...
Unit 21 Bargaining Update for Friday, July 26, 2019
Our Unit 21 educators went to the table Friday with a focus on creating an employee culture that embraces the diversity of the California Department of Education (CDE) workforce. “Our goal is to create a culture and environment that encourages more...