NORTHERN CALIFORNIA — The Yuba Community College District Board has ratified a new employment contract with its faculty union, the final step in a years-long process that at one time had appeared headed for a strike.
The Board of Trustees voted unanimously in favor of the contract agreement with the Faculty Association of the Yuba Community College District, or FAYCCD, at its Thursday evening meeting.
“This agreement represents a significant step forward for our institution, our faculty, and, most importantly, our students,” said Chancellor Shouan Pan in a statement released by the district. “It reflects the shared commitment of both parties to fostering excellence in education, advancing equity, and ensuring the success of every student we serve.”
The agreement with FAYCCD, whose membership also ratified it, represents the district’s full-time faculty and covers the 2022-23 through 2025-26 academic years.
The district said the agreement “lays the foundation for continued partnership, collaboration and progress together as 2025-26 contract negotiations get underway.”
“After three years of negotiations and being without a contract for over two and a half years, FAYCCD is pleased to finally have a new collective bargaining agreement,” said FAYCCD President Travis Smith. “Although our members will only be receiving 80% of the state-provided cost of living adjustment and significant compromises were necessary to finally reach an agreement, some of our long-held rights were protected and the impact inflation has had on our membership has been somewhat mitigated.”
During the board meeting, Dr. Pan acknowledged “a lot of difficult moments” in the negotiations, which in the late fall had appeared to have broken down. At that time, the union had been preparing for a possible strike that could have spilled over into the spring semester.
The contract requires revising the district budget which, in turn, stretches the budget “in some ways that makes us uncomfortable,” Pan said during the meeting.
“My fellow board members and I are very pleased that the district and the faculty union leadership finally reached an agreement after a lengthy negotiation process,” said District Board President Richard Teagarden in the district’s statement on the ratification. “The approved agreement recognizes the important roles the full-time faculty plays in serving the district mission of student and community success and reinforces our shared commitment to pay equity and system sustainability.”
Smith said communication was key to the agreement being reached.
“The breakthrough in these negotiations largely came from increased communication with the members of the Board of Trustees, Chancellor Pan and FAYCCD leaders,” said Smith. “My sincere hope is that this improvement in communication will continue and the next round of negotiations, which begin in about a year, will prove to be less contentious and lengthy. All said and done, I am optimistic going forward.”
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Yuba College Board approves contract with full-time faculty union
- Elizabeth Larson
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