Water Torture

Hello again to one and all. This volume's first issue is coming out in the tenth month of 2004, and yes, this is the tenth month of wondering what your pay raise for 2004-05 will be. As early as January of this year you started receiving pronouncements from the administration that, despite whatever good news had recently emanated from Sacramento, there just wouldn't be enough money to do more than restore the pay cuts you took in 2003-04. Drip...drip...drip...month after month, even after the governor signed the state's budget in August. With the numerous pots of new money made available to GCC in that budget, you would think they would stop the torture, but instead you were greeted with twin articles from Steve White and Larry Serot at the beginning of this semester still touting the old line.

Our 2004-05 college budget was passed on August 30, and the administration (still claiming poverty) announced reopeners to our contract negotiations that included the offer of a 1 percent raise for 2004-05, but with reductions in short session pay and load banking that would cost our bargaining unit far more. So, we went to work. Guild leadership researched the budget and repeatedly demonstrated to the administration that it did not acknowledge about a million dollars in expected income, and that there were also about a million and a half acknowledged dollars that could be reallocated. For weeks, they quibbled over the figures, but as of this writing have taken another tack.

Although they are not coming clean about any other hidden money, they now admit that these two and a half million dollars are indeed available. It's just that we can't have them. Moreover, they admit it's not because allocating these dollars to employee pay will cut into the ending balance that the Board of Trustees wants the college to have next June. This two and a half million is on top of that. So in addition to being evidence of previous acts of bad faith, this new angle raises the question as to where in the world these dollars will go if not into significant pay raises.

Could it be towards funding items that were rated too low a priority to put in the college budget, some of which have recently sneaked through to the Board of Trustees without going to the Budget Committee? Could it be for new pet projects in various areas? Something else? Could it really be that none of these things can wait in order to give employees a real pay raise this year? How much longer will this go on?

Health Insurance
One of the sources of the two and a half million dollars we found was that the college had budgeted for a $480,000 increase in health insurance costs this year, but this is about half again as large as the actual increase will be. Blue Shield increases were especially tame this year, even as Kaiser rates went up significantly. Kaiser is also unilaterally hiking their co-payments for prescriptions to levels similar to Blue Shield. Starting in 2005, Kaiser folk will pay twice the monthly co-pay if ordering a 100-day supply. Thus, for example, the co-pay for a 100-day supply of a "brand" (as opposed to generic) medication will go from $20 to $40. You can find out more details at this year's Health Fair for open enrollment which will be from 1 until 5 pm on Wednesday, November 17, 2004. Watch your e-mail for location.

Reminders
For more rapid communication, I use the E-News to send out updates to Guild members, but let me reiterate a few E-News items for the benefit of all. The Guild's 2003-2006 bargaining agreement was ratified by a 124 to 6 vote last month. One of the items included in that package was an update of the physician designation requirements for Worker's Compensation insurance. In the case of a workplace injury, you will be required during the WC process to use the doctors the district has selected unless you file a form in advance designating a physician you would prefer to use. You can get the form from the Human Resources office, and it should also be available on the college's website. Make sure the doctor you designate handles WC cases, because many don't.

Finally, make sure to visit www.aftplus.org for a plethora of deals and discounts for members of the American Federation of Teachers. Highlights this month include pet care offers, wireless phone service (Cingular), and discounts on books (from union-staffed Powell's bookstore), credit reports, and music CDs. Also, visit www.aflcio.org/shop for pro-union books, t-shirts, and other promotional items. &

CHAPARRAL

Water Torture