Meet Your CFA Bargaining Team Series Kicks Off

As negotiations continue on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement for the CSU’s 29,000 faculty, it’s time to meet members of the CFA Bargaining Team. We’ll be highlighting a few members each week for the rest of the term.

This week, Elaine Newman, Meghan O’Donnell, and Randy Solorio share why they wanted to be on the Bargaining Team and what they hope to see in a new contract.

Elaine Newman
Professor of math and statistics at Sonoma State
Years with CSU: 23
CFA roles: serves on Sonoma’s faculty rights, political action, and membership and organizing committees; a member of statewide the Political Action and Legislation Committee and Audit Committee.

Her first time on the Bargaining Team, Newman wants to reinforce the rights of our current contract while ensuring faculty have the freedom to pursue intellectual passions, earn a fair salary, and receive dependable raises.

Newman urges all Unit 3 members to speak with their colleagues and make sure they are CFA members.

“Our power at the bargaining table is really the power we all have for collective action,” she said.

Watch Newman share more of her experience bargaining with the CSU.

Meghan O’Donnell
Political and social history lecturer at CSU Monterey Bay
Years with CSU: 10
CFA roles: Monterey Bay chapter lecturer representative; recently re-elected to serve as statewide Associate Vice President Lecturers, North.

O’Donnell wanted to serve on the Bargaining Team to lend a voice to lecturers, but also roll up her sleeves and fight for a better contract.

“I really wanted to ensure that whatever we achieve, there’s something in it for everyone, regardless of who you are, what your classification is in the CSU,” O’Donnell said.  “This campaign, I really want to see us move forward and achieve some of the radical change that is needed to address the working conditions of contingent faculty, for lecturers, for coaches, for counselors, for librarians.  I think there’s a lot of places where the contract could be updated to really reflect the realities of our work.”

Watch O’Donnell share her thoughts on how members can help the Bargaining Team.

Randy Solorio
Head coach of women’s gymnastics at Sacramento State
Years with CSU: 35
CFA roles: member of the statewide Coaches Committee

Randy Solorio decided to be on the Bargaining Team to help CFA win the best working conditions for faculty and to provide a voice for coaches in developing proposals and agreements.

His first time serving on the Bargaining Team, Solorio said he wanted to approach the CSU from the middle of the road and provide management’s team with the benefit of the doubt.  But he’s been disappointed by their lack of collaboration.

To push for more cooperation from the CSU, Solorio urges members to get involved and participate in negotiations.

“Get to know what’s going on.  Those voices are the most important – the ones on the outside,” he said. “Just take a step into the circle, get involved.  If we don’t know what you need, we can’t help.”

Watch Solorio talk more about how it feels to be at the bargaining table.