Teacher Appreciation Week – Turning admiration into action
As Teacher Appreciation Week comes to a close, CFT members throughout the state are being showered with gift cards, flowers, heartfelt drawings, and other expressions of appreciation from our students and families.
While the gifts and recognition are gladly accepted, as U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona writes, it’s time to turn admiration into action.
Low pay and lack of resources and support are driving too many educators and classified professionals out of our schools. High turnover and staffing shortages are a reality in nearly every district.
To address the crisis, local unions throughout the state are organizing to demand the wages and resources they need to do their critical work. And it’s paying off. Last week, UTLA set the standard when they ratified a contract that included a 21% raise over three years and a host of further support for students.
But this is not a problem that can be solved at the local level alone. It will take all of us, working together, to force the state of California to look for the bold solutions that are needed to fix the problem.
And there is no better place to start than AB 938, the CFT-sponsored legislation that would raise funding for TK-12 salaries for all school workers by 50%. The bill will be heard by the Assembly Appropriations Committee next week. Take a moment to sign the CFT petition urging lawmakers to support this critical bill.
Urge CA lawmakers to restore repeatability and increase repetition opportunities in community colleges
Please take a moment to sign the CFT petition urging members of the Assembly Appropriations Committee to support AB 811 (Fong) to allow students to repeat credit courses. Community colleges have seen devastating impacts because of the restrictions on repeatability that went into effect in 2013.
CFT joins labor allies in supporting constitutional amendment to enshrine labor rights in the state Constitution
This week CFT President Jeff Freitas joined California Labor Federation President Lorena Gonzalez, Building Trades President Andrew Merideth, and other labor leaders from throughout the state announcing the introduction of SCA 7, a constitutional amendment that would enshrine the right of all workers to join a union and bargain collectively with their employer in the state Constitution.
“We have a California Constitution that includes rights for a lot of people,” said Gonzalez at the event. “Working people should have their rights in there too.”
Once it passes both houses, it will be put to the voters as a November 2024 ballot measure. At a moment when public opinion of organized labor has never been higher, now is the time to make this bold statement for workers’ rights.
Tell Congress: Avoid a default crisis
Speaker McCarthy and Republicans in Congress are refusing to pay the bills and threatening a default on the national debt. They want to create a crisis so they can make deep cuts to popular programs like Social Security and Medicare, taking away health care and retirement security from seniors, veterans, and working families. But this isn’t just politics–it’s incredibly irresponsible. Failure to pay the bills would cause tremendous economic harm to the American people, including painful cuts to public education.
Take action today by calling your member of Congress urging them to to pass a clean bill raising the debt limit as soon as possible.
