College waits on news from Sacramento
A group of 18 workers hoping to retain their jobs at Santa Monica College will remain unemployed after the deadline for the so-called “workshare” proposal passed last week.
The failure of workers to strike a deal with the board of trustees erases one of the last question marks in this year’s contentious $208 million budget. Under the proposed “workshare” offer, the campus workers would have kept their jobs, valued at $842,536, but taken a cut in both hours and pay.
Workers at SMC called the offer a smokescreen and accused the board of union busting. But board members, who have overseen millions of dollars in cuts this year, said their hands were tied by the uncertainty in Sacramento.
Phil Hendricks, president of the California School Employees Association, the SMC worker union, said the offer was rejected in earlier negotiations because the school refused to guarantee no more layoffs this year. He said the cut positions, which range from athletic trainer to clerical assistant to gardener, targeted union leaders.
“They put a poison pill in what was supposed to be a fair deal for us,” Hendricks said. “It seems to be a mindset, I think, that came with this administration that they can get by without unions.”
Board members told a different story. They said they are doing everything in their power to preserve classes, but are unable to promise there will be no more layoffs because of the horrendous state of California’s economy.
“I think the board wanted to do work-share,” said Nancy Greenstein, a board member who in the past has earned praise for her support of academic programs and faculty. “But I had issues with agreeing to no layoffs... just because of the unknown state of the state budget.”
With the window on the offer now closed, SMC officials said the only variable left in this year’s budget is what, if any, further cuts will be handed down from Sacramento later this school year. The school has $1.8 million in reserve funds, and Tom Donner, SMC’s executive vice president, said he expects that money will be used to offset further shortcomings from the state.
When the final word will come is anybody’s guess. With Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger now in the driver’s seat, it could be a month or longer before SMC officials have a sense of what direction the finances will go.
A total of $10 million has been cut at SMC since February — classes are down by 26 percent, five programs have been eliminated, and hundreds of jobs for teachers, workers, administrators and student workers are gone. Enrollment at the school, considered one of the best junior colleges in the state, is down from 31,000 to 25,000 this fall.
Despite all the trimming, SMC has embarked on a series of ambitious development projects funded with bond money not available for teacher salaries and classes. One of those capital projects the new library, will open Tuesday.
Lantz Simpson, president of the faculty association, said the irony of the new buildings has not been lost on campus staff. Simpson, who has been a vocal proponent of alternative ways of dealing with the budget cuts, criticized the board of trustees for its handling of the deficit.
“Many faculty are very angry about what’s happening at the college and believe that the drastic cuts are unnecessary,” he said.
Simpson was joined by an overwhelming majority of faculty, who orchestrated a vote of no confidence in SMC President Piedad F. Robertson last school year. College workers in a separate election also approved a vote of no confidence in Robertson.
All told, the cuts at the college have left deep wounds that will take time to repair, officials said.
“It’s been a difficult year,” Greenstein said. “The decisions we were asked to make were very critical to the college and to the life of the people who attend class and work there.
“At this point, I wish I could say we know what’s going to happen, that we know what our budget’s going to be, but I can’t.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 13, 2003. Read the original PDF.