Find contact information for your local Labor Relations Representative
Helpful documents to learn more about your rights
Step-by-step guide to the Grievance Process
A guide to help you through the Probationary Period
Learn more about salary issues
A list of Senators, Assemblymembers, and Government Officials that ACSS Endorses
Support Candidates that protect the best interest of Excluded Employees
Periodic updates on Legislative Bills that ACSS monitors
ACSS meetings held at YOUR Department
Annual Event held in the State Capitol
Upcoming Board Meeting Information and forms
The Triennial event for ACSS Elections and Policy Changes
Even though state supervisors, managers, and confidential employees are excluded from the collective bargaining process by law, your ACSS is working with CalHR to determine how they will apply the provisions of the rank and file bargaining agreements to excluded employees.
Prior administrations have extended rank and file bargaining agreements to excluded employees in so called "me too" agreements, but the livelihoods of the State's most skilled and dedicated employees are usually not addressed until after all of the rank and file agreements are finalized.
ACSS is pushing for a change to this unwritten policy - both with our current anti-compaction bill and ongoing talks with CalHR.
CalHR Excluded Employee Labor Relations Officer Stephen Booth said that although it is the current administration's policy to not "disadvantage supervisory employees," he cannot guarantee that the same pay package in the rank and file agreements will be extended to excluded employees.
Your ACSS will continue to work with CalHR and the Legislature to ensure that their responsibility in setting excluded employee compensation is met.
ACSS' anti-compaction bill - SB 216 - has taken another step forward to rectifying the phenomena in which state supervisors often make less than those they supervise.
The Assembly Standing Committee on Public Employees, Retirement and Social Security has set a hearing date of Wednesday, June 26th for SB 216, which would require the State to maintain its recommended 10% differential between supervisors and their employees or provide a detailed report when they are unable to do so for financial reasons.
As the budget process finalizes, your ACSS is tracking key changes that may impact state supervisors, managers, and confidential employees in the Department of State Hospitals (DSH).
In his original 2013 budget proposal, Gov. Brown called for the reduction of staff at Vacaville and Salinas facilites and the activation of the new Stockton California Health Care Facility. In his May budget revise; however, Gov. Brown had proposed eight different changes to his original DSH budget, including adding positions at Vacaville and Salinas facilities.
A day before the constitutionally mandated deadline, both Houses of the California Legislature passed the main budget bill, which includes a rare surplus.
There are still some 20+ "trailer bills" for the Legislature to evaluate, however. It's fairly common for the Legislature to have to modify existing law to allow budget changes to be implemented. These minor law changes are known as trailer bills.
It is expected that the Legislature will convene on Saturday, June 15 for final votes on the trailer bills.
In the early morning of June 11th, SEIU Local 1000 reached a tentative bargaining agreement with the State which includes an across the board raise and prevents furloughs or PLPs for three years.
The raises in the agreement are tied to as-yet unspecified revenue targets. If the State meets said targets, a 2% raise will go into effect July 1, 2014, and another 2.5% raise will go into effect July 1, 2015. If the State fails to meet the revenue targets, a 4.5% raise will go into effect July 1, 2015.
In an effort to mitigate costs incurred by members, CalPERS has launched a "verification project" to weed out dependents who may be wrongly receiving healthcare benefits.
The audit will run through June 30, 2013, and lists former spouses, grandchildren, and children of former spouses among those ineligble to receive healthcare benefits as dependents.
See the full text of CalPERS' press release for additional details.
After being held in the suspense file until the release of Gov. Brown's revised budget, a 6-0 bipartisan vote on May 29th by the Senate Appropriations Committee sent ACSS' anti-compaction bill (SB 216) past its first major hurdle and on to the Assembly for review.
Our bill - which aims to resolve the phenomenon in which supervisors often earn less than those they supervise - has enjoyed widespread support from both sides of the aisle in its journey through the Senate, and we expect a similar progression through the Assembly.
SB 216 would require the state to maintain a recommended 10% salary differential between supervisors and the employees they oversee, or require CalHR to provide a detailed report on impacted classficiations and why they are unable to meet the 10% differential.
At acting CalHR Director Julie Chapman's confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Rules Committee, Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) briefly addressed the long standing issue of salary compaction - the phenomenon in which California state supervisors make less than those they supervise.
"As the economy improves and more jobs open in the private sector, it will be hard to retain higher level state employees because we're not matching the financial opportunities [they offer]," said Sen. Jackson.
"What do you think CalHR might be able to do to keep those skilled people in state service?"
Governor Brown released his revised budget on May 14th.
Though we expected the revised budget would be conservative, Gov. Brown seems to be anticipating a bleak few years for California.
In recent weeks, the Legislative Analyst's Office and State Controller John Chiang have stated that California is enjoying unanticipated revenues of $4.5 billion; however, Gov. Brown's new budget claims just $2.8 billion in revenues for this year.
Brown's budget focuses mainly on education spending, and largely avoids the hot button issue of state employee compensation, though the 3% top step raise for excluded and rank and file employees is still earmarked. Additionally, the budget confirms the end of the PLP 2012 program effective June 30th, 2013.
The budget will now be reviewed and adjusted by the Legislature. The Governor is constitutionally mandated to sign the budget by June 30th.
Both the summary and detailed budget breakdown are available via www.ebudget.ca.gov
ACSS has written to Gov. Brown urging him to end a DMHC policy that burdens state employees with autistic children with unneccessary costs and inadequate treatment.
Nearly 3,700 children of state employees enrolled in CalPERS-funded HMO plans currently are denied prompt and affordable treatment for autism due to an existing California law that forces parents to obtain an autism Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) administered by a state-licensed therapist, when no state licensing technically exists for ABA therapists.
From the letter to Gov. Brown:
In order to comply with the DMHC's troubling rule, parents of autistic children enrolled in CalPERS funded health care programs must instead seek ABA from uncertified, but state-licensed, marriage and family therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, and speech therapists.
Read the full letter to Gov. Brown for additional details.
Tags
Date
To report an error on this page or leave a comment about the website, email the webmaster at communications@acss.org or visit our Contact Form.