July 15, 2008
Dear State College faculty and librarians,
The MSCA, along with some MTA-affiliated higher education unions, are attending Governor Patrick's town hall meetings being held across the state. A list of the dates and locations appears at the bottom of this email. We are asking members, whenever possible, to attend these meetings and ask the Governor about the delay in bargaining created by his administration. Some possible questions might be:
"Governor Patrick: Our contract expired on June 30th. Although we are not here to negotiation our contract with you, your refusal to authorize a salary increase at the bargaining table is making progress impossible. When can we expect you to authorize a salary increase?" "Governor Patrick: State College faculty are paid between 10 and 20 percent less than our national peers. One of the 57 points in your Readiness Project report is to address this. Although we appreciate your recognition of this problem, why do you want to wait until the 2012-2015 timeframe to address this when we are having trouble recruiting and retaining faculty now?"
"Governor Patrick: Our contract expired on June 30th. Although we are not here to negotiation our contract with you, your refusal to authorize a salary increase at the bargaining table is making progress impossible. When can we expect you to authorize a salary increase?"
"Governor Patrick: State College faculty are paid between 10 and 20 percent less than our national peers. One of the 57 points in your Readiness Project report is to address this. Although we appreciate your recognition of this problem, why do you want to wait until the 2012-2015 timeframe to address this when we are having trouble recruiting and retaining faculty now?"
You should give your name and your affiliation (the college you work at and, if you choose, your union affiliation.) Please report back to your Chapter President or my office any interaction with the governor or his staff and how they responded to your questions.
Former MSCA President Pat Markunas, Salem State Chapter President Amy Everitt, MTA Consultant Donna Sirutis and I, along with a handful of Salem State faculty, attended the first such meeting in Salem on July 8th. Although we did not have the opportunity to ask a question, our presence was noted by the governor's staff and Governor Patrick himself.
We were wearing the blue and white "EQUITABLE PAY, Not Just Proclamations" stickers. The governor said that he "sees the people with the blue patches are here." His staff approached us and asked "you're the people from the Framingham State meeting, aren't you?" referring to the demonstration we held at the governor's town hall meeting on the Readiness Project on June 2nd. (An article about this demonstration appears on the front page of the MSCA Perspective which should be arriving at your home this week or next.)
Contact your Chapter President or my office to get the stickers. Even if you do not get an opportunity to ask a question, our presence is recognized via the stickers. We must keep the pressure on Governor Patrick this summer to pre-authorize the BHE to offer a salary increase!
Thank you for your help in this endeavor! C. J. O'Donnell MSCA President
Upcoming meetings (beginning at 6:00 p.m.): July 16: Amesbury - Upper Millyard Amphitheater July 17: Holyoke - Holyoke Heritage State Park July 21: Milton - The Gazebo, Town Hall Green July 23: Webster - Memorial Beach July 29: Rehoboth - site to be determined July 30: Athol - site to be determined August 4: Great Barrington - site to be determined August 11: Hyannis - site to be determined August 23: Boston (2:00 p.m.) - in conjunction with the Caribbean Day Parade
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