Many bills that bring significant benefits or workplace improvements to teachers and classified employees are now wending their way through the state Legislature. Among them are these three union-sponsored bills CFT continues lobbying to pass.

Expanding family leave for classified and college faculty

The CFT has joined forces with several education unions to co-sponsor AB 2393, Campos, D-San Jose, which would provide community college faculty — full-and part-time — and classified employees, in both K-12 and the colleges, with up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave. This improvement was legislated for K-12 teachers last year.

Qualified employees must first exhaust all accrued sick leave. If an employee continues to be absent on account of parental leave, the employee would receive “differential pay,” which is calculated by reducing the employee’s salary by the amount paid to his or her substitute. For districts that do not have a differential pay policy, qualified employees would receive half of their normal salary.

> Passed the Assembly on May 19 and will now move to the Senate.

Retaining qualified part-time faculty 

Under CFT-sponsored AB 1690, Medina, D-Riverside, community college districts lacking a collective bargaining agreement with part-time faculty (as of January 1, 2017) would have to negotiate one to establish standards for the treatment of part-time faculty including workload distribution, due process and seniority rights.

The purpose of the negotiated agreement would be to retain qualified part-time faculty and establish a seniority list that would govern new assignment offerings and reductions in assignment. Districts with such an agreement in place would be exempted.

> Passed out of the Assembly Higher Education Committee on a 10-2 vote and moved to the Suspense File in Assembly Appropriations Committee.

Classified employee teacher credentialing program

A bill with strong bipartisan support, CFT-sponsored AB 2122, McCarty, D-Sacramento, would offer grants to districts and county offices of education to assist classified employees who want to complete four-year degrees and obtain teaching credentials. Program participants could receive up to $4,000 annually to pay for tuition and books.

This bill aims to increase the number of applicants to teacher credentialing programs and increase diversity among the teaching workforce so that it better matches the student population.

> Passed out of the Assembly Education Committee on April 13 and moved to the Suspense File in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

— By Ron Rapp, Iván Carillo and Jill Rice, CFT Legislative Department

> Find the complete CFT Legislative Report, union-sponsored bills and more about the union’s lobbying efforts.