The "2nd Annual OSEA Food Drive" is quickly approaching!  We are extremely excited to partner with the Sherwood Helping Hands and collect more food for their Backpack for Kids Program!

AFT Resolution 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FOUNDING OF THE AMERICAN FEDERATION
OF TEACHERS WHEREAS, the American Federation of Teachers was founded in Chicago, when eight
local unions formed the AFT and were granted a charter signed by AFL President Samuel Gompers on
May 9, 1916. The original eight local unions were the Chicago Teachers Federation; the Chicago
Federation of Men Teachers; the Chicago Federation of Women High School Teachers; the Gary, Ind.,
Teachers Federation; the Teachers Union of New York; the Oklahoma Teachers Federation; the

Click here for membership application:

Over a dozen adjuncts in Philadelphia who teach at Temple University as well as several other Philadelphia-area colleges and universities congratulate CCAC Adjuncts United for organizing for a union vote. Whereas Temple University has spent several months and tens of thousands of dollars trying to thwart adjuncts from voting for a union, CCAC adjuncts are taking this important step towards meaningful voice over their jobs. Congratulations! Vote!

For breaking updates on the vote, follow @CCAC_adjuncts and #CCACVote.

Part-time teachers have similar work load as tenured staff, make far less money

By: Cheryl Hehl 

Part-time teachers have similar work load as tenured staff, make far less money

By: Cheryl Hehl 

The FCFT offices will be open from 9:00am – 2:00pm (Monday – Friday)

Have a Happy Summer!

 GREETINGS FROM AFT SEATTLE PRO STAFF PRESIDENT CODY HIATT

Well, we made it through 2020!  Our democracy survived intact, effective charges for racial justice continue into 2021, and there’s a new Administration in the White House. Black Lives Matter is at last connecting more deeply with more Americans!  Highest kudos to one in particular-- Stacey Abrams for her work in Georgia that delivered a Senate that stands a chance of passing an agenda supported by the majority of Americans. 

      And closer to home, Pro Staffers still need AFTSPS to safeguard our labor from the employer’s expediency, uphold the dignity of our work, and ensure that we receive good pay for good work. Here is a short list of what we’ve been doing, and our forecast for what must be done going foward…

      At our Fall General membership meeting, we passed a medical hardship policy to help our fellows. We had masks made in a union shop, designed by our very own Pro Staff graphic designer, and distributed to members. We bargained, grieved, and resolved laundry we don't air.

      In the middle of this dark Winter, ctcLink will upend and change how we do our very jobs. “Top down" management isn’t effective  if you don't already know how transactions you perform in  our Legacy (FMS/ SMS / FAM) systems will be performed in PeopeSoft. Sadly, it’s those who never touch our Legacy systems telling us what we need to know for our core functions. 

      Alternatively, our union advocates for a "bottom up" model that empowers staff, and actively takes the initiative in looking for ways to improve delivery of student success and operational excellence. If you haven't been told what ctcLink training to take, find out for yourself at www.seattlecolleges.edu/ctclink.  At minimum, each of us must complete our timecards to get paid and that won't be in TLR anymore.

       This Spring will be a season of growth and renewal. The fruits of our labor might not bloom in the same splendor under the harsh “weather” of COVID-19 or root as easily in the new “soil” of ctcLink. While fewer tall, non-fruit bearing “trees” may allow more sunlight to reach our middle management level, excessive heat may arrive this summer in the form of drops in State budgets and enrollments, which may in turn exacerbate the threat of seasonal “wildfiring.”  

      These are challenges we must meet as a unit because retreat is not a viable option when our students are counting on us for Fall. We want to still be here when vaccines roll out and we phase out of remote operations.

     We hope, plan, and look forward to being able to elbow bump with you in person then! 

In service and solidarity, 
     Cody Hiatt,  President, AFT-SPS Local 6550

Please check out the rest of our Winter Quarter Newsletter for more on what's going on.