UPDATED July 13: Please note this clarification of what I wrote below about updates on our contract negotiations: Executive board members will be receiving monthly negotiation updates, and general updates will be posted to this blog. The Crisis Committee email list will be used to communicate information regarding negotiations and other relevant issues that we do not want to (or cannot) send through the college email system. In other words, it remains important for you to subscribe to the Crisis Committee list, which you can do using the form at the bottom of this post. Thanks. –Richard
Dear Colleagues,
As you all know, our contract expires on August 31st of this year. You may not be aware, however, that negotiations are under way. Indeed, our negotiating team has met with the college’s team three times so far. They have exchanged contract proposals and have been in discussion to clarify precisely what those proposals contain. They are scheduled to meet again in August, have a number of September dates as well, and will soon establish meeting dates beyond September. Please know as well that our negotiating team meets frequently to discuss whatever issues emerge from the negotiating sessions.
As is standard during contract negotiations, the Nassau Community College Faculty Crisis Committee has been activated. This committee, which is not a union committee, is chaired by Professor Donna Hope of the MKT/RET/FBM/FSD/INT Department, and she will soon be reaching out to all of us with more information. Our plan is to send out negotiation updates on a monthly basis, but this is the only one that will be posted to the NCCFT blog. All future updates will be sent out by email from the Crisis Committee. If you want to receive them–along with any other information that the Crisis Committee sends out–you will need to provide them with your email address, which you can do by filling out the form below. Since we cannot use our NCC email addresses for Crisis Committee purposes, you must use a private email address. We will have no choice but to delete anyone who uses their NCC email address from the list.
The issues we are facing in these negotiations go right to the heart not only of our livelihoods, but also our mission as an institution of higher education. It is important that you stay informed. Please fill out the form as soon as possible.
In Solidarity,
Richard Newman