[Editor’s Note: In light of tonight’s specially scheduled 7 o’clock School Board meeting, Mr. Mielke, the President of the Teachers Union, dispatched the following letter to his 300-plus members and to Supt. Dr. Myrna Rivera Cote.]
First, in response to the Superintendent's letter about reduced compensation:
Management did share this with me at the conclusion of our bargaining session last Thursday.
There is some old case law which indicates that districts considering pay reductions for a given year need to notify the employees of that intent during the previous year. What Myrna's note does is meet that legal requirement.
It does not mean that there will be a pay cut.
What it does mean is that the District may propose a pay cut when we go to the table in the fall. There are a number of things that have to happen before they can implement a cut.
First, any changes in compensation need to be bargained. When we propose a pay increase, it doesn't automatically happen.
And if the administration proposes a pay cut, that's not automatic, either.
The teams meet and bargain.
WE WILL NOT AGREE TO ANY PAY CUTS, especially in light of the fact that there have been NO administrative cuts at Irving Place this year; the School District still pays a public relations consultant to write a newsletter; School Board members still accept District-paid health benefits for themselves (and for their spouses and dependents); and “top” administrators still enjoy fat mileage allowances, despite the fact that Culver City is just 4 square miles in area.
If the School District proposes a pay cut for next year, what you can anticipate is that the bargaining process will, at some point, reach “impasse”; the state will appoint a mediator; and if there is still no agreement, the process moves on to the final stage: fact-finding.
A neutral fact-finder issues a report. But the report is advisory only. It is not binding on the parties. Only when the parties have gone through all these steps can the District impose its final salary offer. Teachers can accept that offer, or we can strike.
In order to head off that scenario, we will be working overtime (and we'll need your help) to elect teacher-friendly candidates to the board in November.
Three seats are up for grabs.
If we can get our candidates elected, we've got a good chance of re-ordering the School District’s spending priorities.
Also, we will be reminding the community that just a few years ago, the School District gave a second round of raises — to its management employees only — breaking a 25-year old paradigm of everyone in the District getting the same percentage raise.
Clearly, that second round of management increases would need to be rescinded before there is any talk of cuts in teacher pay.
(One quick budget note: The financial picture is grim. Many of you have asked about the federal money coming our way. We have gotten some new federal money, but we will lose more in state funds than we have received from the feds. Also, the federal money is “one-time” money. We need ongoing funds to maintain teachers and programs.)
Your bargaining team continued work on Thursday as we try to wrap up this year's talks.
We have protected your salaries and benefits from any cuts this year, and we are continuing to work to get more prep time for elementary teachers, more meeting-free minimum days for them to prepare for parent conferences, limits on the frequency of District-called meetings, and some contract language which clarifies which extra-duties we are required to take on and which extra-duties are voluntary.
Finally, you may have heard that there was some drama at Tuesday night's School Board meeting. Teachers (and parents) from El Rincon painted a picture of a school in revolt against its new principal.
Apparently, after just a few months on the job, the new administrator decided to implement his vision of where the school should go, without input from teachers, classified employees, parents or students.
Many of us have had that same experience — a principal whose idea of shared-decision making is to make a decision and to share it with the rest of us.
We'll keep you posted.
(By the way, you can watch a replay of the Board meetings on Friday nights. But don't pin me down on the exact time and station. Check your local listings. I think it’s Channel 35 at 7 p.m.)
Don't hesitate to contact your site rep or call me at home if any of this is unclear or if you need more information.
Thanks for your continued support.
Mr. Mielke may be contacted at ccfthome.org
