July 20,2005
Dear MSCA Members:
On Monday, July 18th, I received written confirmation, in a letter from Chancellor Gill, that the Romney administration is committed to submitting a request for the funding of the MSCA contract to the Legislature. This letter has been posted on the MSCA website.
I spent both Monday and Wednesday of this week at the State House, but was unable to get firm information on when the legislative request will be filed or when the Legislature will take action. Unofficially, I was told that the governor could file the legislation "soon" and that the Legislature could take action this summer, though the fall is a much more likely time. Updates will be posted on the website throughout the summer.
On another important issue, this afternoon the House of Representatives voted to override the governor's veto of the moneys needed to fund a return of health insurance premiums to 85/15 for state employees hired prior to June 30, 2003 and to 80/20 for state employees hired after that date. The veto override vote now goes to the Senate, which is expected to follow suit. Many thanks to all faculty and librarians who contacted their local representatives and senators on this issue.
On behalf of the MSCA, I would like to commend the MSCA Bargaining Committee, the MSCA Board of Directors and our MTA consultant, Donna Sirutis, for their hard work on settling this contract and supporting the strategy to get the funding process started. I would also like to thank BHE Chair Stephen Tocco, Chancellor Judy Gill, and Presidents Robert Antonucci and Dana Mohler-Faria for their determination to get approval from the administration for the contract funding. We still have a way to go in this process, but an important hurdle has been passed.
Once again, I would like to thank the faculty and librarians for their support and patience this summer. We will be in touch as the process moves forward.
Pat Markunas Patricia V. Markunas, MSCA President
Previous Messages to the Membership 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000
MSCA Home/Messages to the Membership 7/22/05