Unit 3: Professional Educators and Librarians

On Thursday, July 14, SEIU Local 1000 met with the OCE to discuss both the Expectations Memo and the Laptop Program. 

The SEIU Local 1000 Bargaining Unit (BU) 3 Team held our first meeting with the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR) of our Classification and Compensation Joint Labor Management Committee (Article 5.19.2 of our Contract) on March 9 2022, and used our first meeting as an opportunity to lift up some long-term concerns we have that impact our BU 3 educators at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitations’ Office of Correctional Education (OCE). 

Every DSH facility is entitled to have a Health and Safety Committee, according to our MOU (contract), Section 10.2. Because of this, members of our Union are working hard to ensure Health and Safety Committees exist and are successful at each facility.

On February 4, 2021, our Union met with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and California Correctional Health Care Services (CCHCS) to meet and confer over the implementation of the institutional entrance screening policy at each institution throughout the state.

These past few weeks have been interesting to say the least. Not knowing what you are going to do tomorrow due to the daily changes can be challenging. I want everyone to know our first priority is the health and safety of all of our represented employees and that your job stewards have been working hard to keep up with the constant changes and ensure that management follows the new working conditions. I, your BUNC, and all the Unit 3 stewards have been working hard to ensure that at each facility the policies coming out of Sacramento are being followed so as to reduce possible transmittal of the COVID-19.

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:

Monday, August 5, 2019, was an important day for our Unit 3 bargaining team as they signed 23 Tentative Agreements. In addition, they continued to protect important provisions from the current contract and challenge state negotiators to support professional development for Unit 3 members.

On Monday, July 29, 2019, Local 1000’s Unit 3 bargaining team met with state negotiators again and rolled over five provisions in the current contract, one of which protects workers from extreme temperatures while on the job.

Most Unit 3 employees work in state facilities where buildings can get very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter. These temperature extremes can have an impact on an employee’s ability to effectively carry out their job duties and can have health and safety implications as well.

Unit 3 agreed to roll-over language on Monday that:

Monday, July 8, marked the first 2019 meeting between the Local 1000 Unit 3 bargaining team and state representatives as they began the process of negotiating another great contract for union members. Serving teachers and librarians across California from Blythe to Weaverville, the Unit 3 team made four presentations to the state advocating for the interests of SEIU 1000 members and their families, with the goal of creating a California For All.  

Hello everyone,

This is the first of the Bargaining Unit 3 bi-monthly informational letters.  As in past newsletters, this e-publication will be used to keep Unit 3 members informed about what is happening, our contractual rights and how to enforce our contract.  Of course, I want you to contact me with anything you may want to add: an explanation of a specific contract section, giving a shout out to someone or a special conference/book/tool that you think everyone should know about. Feel free to send it to me.

On August 7th, 2018, our union met with the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR) and California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Department of Juvenile Justice (CDCR DJJ) to discuss the implementation of the Cellsense Contraband Detector program within the DJJ Facilities in the state.

On February 22 and 23, representatives of the Education Service Branch (ESB) of the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), sat down with Bargaining Unit 3 representatives Pamm Handel of the Northern California Youth Correctional Center, and Susan Stuart of the Ventura Youth Correctional Facility, along with Bruce Theel, Bargaining Unit 3 Chair.

Your Bargaining Unit met with representatives of the DJJ on January 18th, to discuss member concerns with salaries, caused by the introduction of the July to June Academic Calendar.

Troy Fennel, Superintendent of Education Service Branch, Christina O’Connell from DJJ Personnel and Caleb McKim, CDCR Labor, met with Bruce Theel, BU3 Chair, Pamm Handel, DJJ/NCYC and Eloise Merrifield, SEIU Local 1000 staff, at  Local 1000 headquarters.

This message is to bring you up to date on what is happening in the Bargaining Unit. Here are a few things for your information.

First, a shout out to Heather DeFelice, Christina Calacugan, and the folks in the Department of Education’s Southern Diagnostic Center for their work in organizing the voices in the diagnostic centers located in Fremont, Fresno and Los Angeles. 

Senators Nancy Skinner (District 9) and James Beall (District 15) have sponsored a bill (SB825), proposed to them by the California Building Trades Council, directing the CDCR to establish a pre-apprenticeship program.

However, a little research revealed that CDCR reached out to the Trades Council, asking them to propose this to the Senators.

Since our last conference call, we have been working on our options for a strategic action in regard to PIA. We want this to not only be a short-term, but also a very long-term victory. We have seen PIA trying to encroach on our programs in the past, and it appears that they are trying to do it again.

To the Teachers of the Division of Juvenile Justice:

It has come to our attention that a survey has been distributed to employees at DJJ seeking opinions about possible changes to the academic calendar. We want to clarify that the Union is not currently negotiating with the department to change the academic calendar and did not circulate or authorize the distribution of this survey. If you have any additional concerns about this, please contact us.

Sincerely,

Bargaining Unit 3 members met with State Representatives on Feb 21^st, to confer on the academic calendar for the teachers in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Office of Correctional Education.

The State team included the Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent of Correctional Education.

Our bargaining team met with the state for the first time in three months and ended the week frustrated by a continued lack of movement by the state on key issues. 

Earlier in the week, our team presented eye-opening information illustrating the gender pay gap in state civil service. Our union is 66% women and 34% men. The seven unions the state has reached agreement with, overwhelmingly comprised of men, are paid a staggering 43% more than Local 1000 members.

Union Participation

(Or, What Happens To Me If the Union Disappears?)

Part 3 of 3

SEVERAL YEARS IN THE FUTURE:

Sacramento, CA (AP) “Fiorina Repeals Dills Act”

Local 1000 has launched its 2016 contract campaign with these words from President Yvonne R. Walker: “Our contract will be about the strength and the power of our members to win something amazing.” 

Speaking to members statewide on a conference call for Local 1000 stewards and hundreds more who heard the call at listening parties, Walker looked forward to the upcoming negotiations feeling confident about the preparation that’s gone before.

BU3 includes about a thousand correctional librarians and teachers, about four hundred State Special Schools educators, about a hundred teachers in hospitals and developmental centers, about a dozen teachers in the Orientation Center for the Blind, and a handful of teachers working in the Starbase Academy program, employed by the California Military Department.

BU 3 includes about a thousand correctional librarians and teachers, about four hundred State Special Schools educators, about a hundred teachers in hospitals and developmental centers, about a dozen teachers in the Orientation Center for the Blind, and a handful of teachers working in the Starbase Academy program, employed by the California Military Department.

A special message in honor of Teacher Appreciation Day from John Kern, Chair of Bargaining Unit 3’s Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee

May 5, 2015 is Teacher Appreciation Day. Local 1000 appreciates the contributions of its teacher members in Bargaining Unit 3 and is proud to recognize and celebrate you today.  

CDCR’s Office of Correctional Education just came out with its new academic calendar for 2015/2016. Prison teachers in Bargaining Unit 3 are gaining new scheduling flexibility in the 2015-16 academic year as a result of Local 1000’s persistent advocacy efforts. The new calendar retains 208 instructional days, eight staff development days and four quarterly teacher workdays, but the prison schools will stay open a few more days per year, allowing individual teachers to choose some of the instructional days.

A recently completed survey of more than 300 prison educators provided Local 1000 with some valuable feedback about ongoing initiatives and working conditions within state facilities.
The survey demonstrates that the overall, the sentiment of the respondents is that CDCR’s efforts to improve educational opportunities for prisoners are heading in the right direction.
Local 1000 looks forward to collaborating with CDCR to further rebuild and improve prison education.

Local 1000 Educators …

… broadly support the Voluntary Education Program (VEP) model

Please support educators in Bargaining Unit 3 by participating in a survey which will guide the future of educational programming in CDCR. 
In 2011, a survey of teachers by SEIU Local 1000 led to progress through policy and legislation. SB 1121 became law at the beginning of 2013 and requires the involvement of credentialed educators in inmate student assignment decisions.  

Help us shape our educational system by taking the survey.