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Summer Work Schedule
Status Report
As discussed at the last General Union Meeting the local negotiating team is working hard to come to a resolution of this issue. We are meeting regularly with the administration and when we have details of how Summer Work Schedules will be handled, we'll put out an eBulletin with that information.
For those who weren't at the General Union Meeting and may not be aware, CWA has reached an agreement on the modified summer work schedule. The proposal includes language that provides the option to work either 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. or 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. with a 45-minute lunch break Monday thru Thursday or Tuesday thru Friday. Offices that need to remain open five days a week will remain open and, as with the four-day modified schedules, will be worked out between the unit members and their supervisors. This would be during the months of June, July, and part of August.
Many of you may be wondering, will my office be open five days a week, or can I work a Tuesday thru Friday schedule work if my office is open Monday thru Thursdays? The negotiations team is currently working on getting clarification from the administration on these questions, and others, and we hope to include those answers in the eBulletin as well.
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Election of Officers for 2012-2014
Paper Ballots In the Mail
Paper ballots have been mailed to the last known home address to full dues paying members. Ballots must be received in the CNJSCL's office by May 16, 2012.
If you have not received your ballot by May 12, 2012, call the CNJSCL's office at 908-964-8476 to confirm your status as a full dues paying member and to obtain a ballot.
Questions? Contact David Trubatch via email at david.trubatch@montclair.edu.
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Day of Action
This is what solidarity looks like
The Day of Action at Montclair State University (MSU) brought
 | | This is Solidarity! |
together over 225 members of AFT Local 1904, members of CWA 1031, IPFTE 195, AFT Local 6025 and students in unity for a fair and equitable contract, reasonable state College/University tuitions. It was a show of strength demonstrating to Montclair State University President Susan Cole and Governor Chris Christie that they cannot bully our members into agreeing to erode working conditions and job protections which will also negatively impact the academic mission of the University and significantly affect students by decreasing both access and opportunity.
 | | What do we want? A contract! |
After brief remarks from Rich Wolfson, President of AFT Local 1904; Jennifer Higgins, Internal Vice President of AFT Local 1904; Robert Noonan, President of AFT Local 6025; Lisa Grab of NJ United Students and current MSU student; and Steve Young, Executive Director of the Council, the crowd marched though campus, passing Dr. Cole's office, chanting in a call and response manner, "What do we want? A contract! When do we want it? Now!" Closing remarks were given by AFT Local 1904's External Vice President Bill Sullivan. To view more photos, visit our Facebook page or the CNJSCL's website.
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Demand Fair & Balanced Reporting
NJTV only presents one side of the story
NJTV's narrative in its April 26 news broadcasts, about our Day of Action, describes a segment: "Professors protest at New Jersey's universities, " but the voices of the faculty, librarians, staff and students are excluded from the actual broadcast. Instead there is a five-minute interview with the William Paterson University President, whose representatives are making unreasonable demands of the education workers at the bargaining table.
Does NJTV news have a conflict of interest because it is housed at Montclair State and is beholden to the Governor's office? NJTV replaced the public NJN news last year, profiting from taxpayer Corporation for Public Broadcasting funding.
Contact your state legislators and tell them that NJTV, which receives public funding, is housed on public college and university campuses and requests donations, should tell both sides of the story. If you contact your state legislators, please let the Local's office know.
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BKMUW Scholarship Recipients
Introduced at May 2 General Union Meeting
AFT Local 1904 announced the recipients of the 2012 Becker-Keenen-Moore-Uhia-Waller Scholarship at its May 2, 2012 General Union Meeting.
 | | L-to-R: Maria Skolyszewski, Qualicia Quiles, Samantha Spencer, Kelly Vaghenas, & Robert Barrows |
Robert Barrows, Qualicia Quiles, Samantha Spencer, and Kelly Vaghenas are recipients of the BKMUW Scholarship and Maria Skolyszewski is the recipient of the Ellen Kerns Nunn Scholarship. The Local extends its thanks to the Scholarship Committee members for their hard work and thoughtful consideration of the applicants. The committee members are: Carmen E. Reyes-Cuevas, Mei Ling Chow, Susan Hagen, John J. Gaynor, Louise Davies, Jonida Dervishi, Andrew Maxwell, and Jeffrey Schonfel.
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Current Events
Links to Recent Articles of Interest
- Watch Charlie Wowkanech, President, New Jersey State AFL-CIO, addressing the Day of Action crowd at TCNJ.
- 1 in 2 college graduates are unemployed or underemployed. To read the Associated Press article to learn more.
- Read about Gov. Christie's support of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker in The Star-Ledger.
- ALEC's influence in New Jersey equates to tenure reform and attacks on collective bargaining. To learn more and find out who in New Jersey supports ALEC read the April 1, 2012 article in The Star-Ledger.
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Member News and Notes
Congratulations to our members honored at the April 23, 2012 reception for University Authors:
CART: Robert Livingston Aldridge, Heather J. Buchanan, Kaled K. Hameide, Suzanne M. Trauth, Abby Lillethun, David Witten
CEHS: Kathleen D. Bauer, Doreen Liou, Zoe Burkholder, Jonathan Caspi, David Schwarzer
CHSS: Esperanza Brizuela-Garcia, Elda Davidson, Cynthia Eller, Milton A. Fuentes, Grover Furr, Marta Lopez-Luaces, Mary C. English, David Galef, Jefferson J.A. Gatrall, Jonathan Greenberg, Laura Kramer (emerita), Art Simon, Sangeeta Parashar, Yong Wang, Lesli Rapparlie, Gabriel Rubin, Elizabeth Emery, Marisa S. Trubiano, Louis B. Zimmer (emeritus)
CSAM: Meiyin Wu
SBUS: John Wang
University Advancement: Mike Peters
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 | Richard Wolfson, President
AFT Local 1904 |
President's Corner
The last few weeks have been busy. Doctor Cole finally declared that Montclair State University is now officially a business in her Spring Address to the campus. There were no mentions of community or academic traditions. Teaching was not mentioned once. Only that the bottom line is now what matters most because the State is not picking up their fair share. Her speech was summed up by one of your colleagues with the simple statement "It's a business. Get over it!" Our "Day of Action" event successfully showed our university President and the Governor that we are standing shoulder to shoulder in solidarity against the draconian proposals made by the state and still on the table after almost a year of working with no contract. Other campuses in our sector had equally effective events, and we're confident that it was noticed and will make a difference. Your negotiating team continues to negotiate with the state with little or no progress. The gutting of sabbatical and vacation-day provisions are still priorities for the State, as is the evisceration of almost every protection and every program in the contract. We're working hard to make reasonable counter-proposals on all of these issues, fully cognizant of the political and economic climate of the State at this particular time. And we still do not have a legitimate economic offer on the table even though IFPTE and CWA have agreements. The semester has wound down, but your officers and negotiating team will continue working through the summer on local and statewide issues. We'll continue our Solidarity Walks each Wednesday and I hope to see those of you who were previously unable to join in because of class schedules. I also hope to see you all at Commencement. We'll have buttons in the robing room for you, to let the administration, trustees, students, and parents know we are still working without a contract. We need to keep up the pressure. It makes a difference. |
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Upcoming Events
General Union Meeting:
When: September 2012
Time: 2:30-4:00 p.m.
Where: SC 419
Solidarity Walks:
When: Every Wednesday
Time: 12:30 p.m. Where: Meet @ Cafe Diem Join us in solidarity as we take a lunchtime walk around campus. 
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BlueWave NJ Meeting
On Tues., May 15 at 7 p.m., BlueWave NJ and NJ Working Families Alliance is holding a forum on Gov. Christie's proposed budget and its impact on public services, including public higher education.
The forum will be held at the Montclair Women's Club located at 82 Union Street in Montclair, NJ.
For more information and to RSVP, please contact marciam@bluewavenj.org.
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