Newsroom
What does gratitude look like? Find out from three members deep in student debt
How AFT’s legal victory with the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program will change lives
In 2018, Jessica Saint-Paul, who has a doctorate in medical science and teaches public health and health occupation courses at Southwest and Trade Tech colleges, attended a benefits conference put on by her local, the Los Angeles College Faculty Guild. They covered Public Service Loan Forgiveness, a federal program that promised if you worked in public service for 10 years and made 120 payments, the remainder of your loan would be forgiven.
CFT wins top awards in national labor media competition
Federation lands 11 awards for communications in 2020
In a friendly competition with state and regional labor groups around the nation, the CFT won 11 awards from the International Labor Communications Association.
The awards show that content is still king. The CFT website won First Place in “best electronic content” for the third year in a row. Seven member-based stories won awards, with four claiming First Place honors.
What are the WEP and GPO and how will they affect your pension?
Now is the time to make our case to Congress
Retired Berkeley Unified teacher Bonnie Cediel taught for 16 years. She was married for 34, but her partial CalSTRS pension precludes her from receiving any Social Security spousal benefits. The Government Pension Offset, (GPO) passed in 1977, is the reason.
Teaching social justice and labor history: A how-to for K-12 educators
Kids' Book Reviews
Reviews by Bill Morgan
It used to be hard to find quality non-fiction, especially history, for kids. It was dumbed-down, or poorly formatted, or biased, or written in dry adultese, or some combination of these. Thankfully, that has changed.
A new generation of high-interest, attractively packaged kids’ books dealing with social justice issues and using leveled vocabulary are now available. This is a group of some of the best recent ones that I have used in my years teaching social studies for social justice.
UC lecturers greet new contract as “a game changer” and “only the beginning”
PHOTO GALLERIES
UC-AFT negotiates groundbreaking agreement
The view from Westwood
UCLA — It was about 3 a.m., UC-AFT President Mia McIver recalled, when negotiators for the University of California texted the administration’s “final offer.” McIver knew that all major contract issues, from job security to salary increases, were settled. She also knew that 6,500 lecturers were set to strike at all nine UC campuses in a few hours.
BREAKING: Strike averted — UC lecturers reach groundbreaking settlement at 4 am
SUMMARY: UC-AFT reached a groundbreaking settlement with UC administration in the middle of the night. The planned two-day ULP strike has been called off. There will be noon rallies to celebrate today at all nine campuses.
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What does a UC-AFT strike look like?
PHOTO GALLERY: Lecturers strike in 2002 for job security
Tenuous system torn apart by denial of three-year contracts to experienced teachers
Anger among lecturers at UC Davis finally boiled over at the end of the spring semester. On May 29 and 30, 2002, non-tenured faculty walked the picket line instead of teaching classes, and turned the campus entrance on A Street into an impromptu educational institution.
Show solidarity with UC-AFT! Join the ULP strike Wednesday and Thursday
Update: The strike is called off after an agreement was reached in the early morning hours of November 17. See the news story.
Late Saturday night, the lecturers of the University Council-AFT announced that they have notified UC management that lecturers will take part in an unfair labor practice strike on November 17 and 18. This strike is about a pattern of bad faith bargaining and unfair labor practices committed by President Michael Drake’s administration.
What does classified work look like 20 months into the pandemic?
Staff shortages, vaccine mandates, strict school bus protocols, but also pay raises and lots of union support
California schools reopened to a new normal. Classified staff are getting their arms around vaccine mandates and making safety protocols part of their daily routines. And nearly every district, from rural elementaries to urban community colleges, are facing serious labor shortages.
Work with formerly incarcerated, homeless students lands staff top honors
California Community Colleges honor two outstanding CFT members
Each year the California Community Colleges recognizes five classified employees for their leadership, commitment and ethics. The 2021 honorees include two dynamic and talented CFT members in the Los Angeles area.
More equity for classified — CFT wins layoff notice equal to certificated
Another new law provides reduced probation period for college staff in non-merit districts
Classified employees will see more equity with their teacher colleagues thanks to union-sponsored bills signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in October. One new law provides equal treatment for classified and certificated employees during layoffs, and another aligns the probation period for community college staff in non-merit and merit districts.
A brief AFT history of paras, classified employees, and social justice
VIDEOS: How paraprofessionals and support staff became an integral part of AFT
In the early summer of 1919, when the American Federation of Teachers found out that the Boston Men Teachers’ Union were intent on ensuring that the Boston Women Teachers’ Union would never achieve equal pay to them, the AFT sent a stern letter telling the men that is not what unionism is about and to stop their actions. The men left the union and even though the AFT knew losing members was dire in 1920, it was the right thing to do.