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CSEA CONNECTION
by Nidal Kobaissi, CSEA president |
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Welcome back to what I hope will be a very great year for the classified staff. The summer break gave me time to look back at last year’s accomplishments and set some new goals for our chapter to accomplish this year. I have to admit that when I first took office, I thought I could change everything in a month or two. Having just completed my ninth month in office, I was off by about a month. It wasn’t easy, but we actually made some progress. We became intensely involved in the Cafeteria Committee and successfully negotiated an agreement with the District that increased the food venues and selections, as well as preserved the jobs of our cafeteria employees. This was accomplished by meeting, getting input from, and compromising with all the constituencies on campus. In the end, we had a cafeteria that had cut its operating costs and increased its variety, with an opportunity for a positive financial future. This is a result of what is possible when we all work together. Another great accomplishment was that for the first time in a long time, our chapter is now represented on every Governance Committee on campus. This allows us to have a voice on these committees that will look out for the best interest of the classified staff. These positions were not filled by chapter leadership, they were filled by members who were interested in getting involved. This requires a serious commitment by the member to attend each meeting, take notes and report any problems to the executive board. I am looking forward to achieving several goals this year. The first and most important is to continue changing our communities’ perception of the classified staff. We need to redefine the term “classified” into a positive and integral partner of the college community. This will take the commitment of every member. We should all strive through hard work to ensure that our reputation is maintained at a level that demands respect. But more than anything, we need to be proactive and get involved in our community. We also need to pay much needed attention to our custodial unit. The custodial staffing levels are not sufficient. The budget crisis and the newly constructed buildings have exhausted our custodial resources. We need to make sure that we have enough custodians to do the job. The current condition creates extra duties and overworks our staff. These types of working conditions also have the potential of creating an unsafe work environment and may lead to injury. We have entered the first round negotiations for the year. We are committed to working with the District to achieve positive results for our members. I told you last December that we needed to become partners in the college community, and if we played our cards right during the budget crisis, we would be in a better position to negotiate when the budget improved. Well, the budget got better, and we played our cards right. The future looks bright. These are just a few of the goals we have set. With the help of great members, we can accomplish great things. & |
