ASASP is the only union
that can represent Administrators &
Supervisors in the Prince George's County, MD
Public School System should
they need
assistance.
Dues to ASASP benefit you
-- Dues to any other union are
merely a gift
The Association
of Supervisory and Administrative School
Personnel . . .
the single,
coordinated voice for administrators,
supervisors, and other professionals employed
by Prince George's County Public Schools who
are designated by the Board of Education as
members of Unit II and Unit III.
For our members, we are the exclusive collective
bargaining representative with regard to all
matters relating to salary, wages, hours, and
other working conditions. ASASP takes
great pride in improving the educational
process for students by helping members become
more effective in their various roles as
educational leaders. Employees who are at
peace with their terms and
conditions of employment are better
equipped to focus on the needs of our future .
. .
. . . our
children
TRESPASSING
School-Based Administrators -
If you have
questions regarding individuals entering your
building - causing a disruption and refusing to
leave when asked - see the Annotated
Code Section 26-102. The Law is very
clear - you may deny access to the
building to any person
who "Acts in a manner that disrupts or disturbs
the normal educational functions of the
institution." This means a Board member,
the Superintendent, parent, union
representative, politician -
anyone. If you
ask somone to leave and they do not, you
have the right to call the police and have them
arrested.
Protect your students,
staff and yourself.
LABOR
QUOTES
Nothing in all the world is
more dangerous than sincere ignorance and
conscientious stupidity.
-- Martin Luther King,
Jr.
About half
our problems would go away overnight if
everybody in this country who wanted to work
had a job.
-- Bill
Clinton
Why the Union-Buster
Sank
A minister, a priest and a
union-buster were fishing from a boat not far
from the shore of a lake. The minister needed
to go to the bathroom so he got out of the
boat, walked across the water, disappeared into
the woods by the shore, then walked back across
the water to the boat and climbed back in. The
priest was the next to make the trip, getting
out of the boat, walking across the water,
disappearing into the trees, then walking back
across the water and returning to the boat. The
union-buster was the last to go. He stepped out
of the boat and immediately sank. The minister
looked at the priest and said, "We really
should have told him where the rocks
are."
THIS WEEK IN
LABOR
HISTORY
January 31
12,000 pecan shellers in San
Antonio, Tex. -- mostly Latino women -- walk
off their jobs at 400 factories in what was to
become a three-month strike against wage cuts.
Strike leader Emma Tenayuca was eventually
hounded out of the state - 1938
Ida M.
Fuller is the first retiree to receive an
old-age monthly benefit check under the new
Social Security law. She paid in $24.75 between
1937 and 1939 on an income of $2,484; her first
check was for $22.54 - 1940
After
scoring successes with representation elections
conducted under the protective oversight of the
California Agricultural Labor Relations Board,
the United Farm Workers of America officially
ends its historic table grape, lettuce and wine
boycotts - 1978 [No man in this century
has had more of an impact on the lives of
Hispanic Americans, and especially farmworkers,
than the legendary Cesar Chavez. The Fight in the Fields tells
of Chavez and his union’s struggles: to raise
farmworker pay from .40 an hour; to win union
recognition from savagely resistant grape and
lettuce growers; to stop the use of deadly
pesticides that were killing children in the
fields. The pacifist Chavez endured several
month-long fasts to counteract what he saw as a
growing tendency toward violence in the
farmworker movement, and many think those
heroic acts contributed to his early death, at
the age of 64. In the UCS bookstore
now.]
Union and student pressure
forces Harvard university to adopt new labor
policies raising wages for lowest-paid workers
- 2002
Five months after Hurricane
Katrina, the New Orleans school board fires
every teacher in the district in what the
United Teachers of New Orleans sees as an
effort to break the union and privatize the
school system - 2005
February 01
Led by 23-year-old Kate Mullaney,
the Collar Laundry Union forms in Troy, N.Y,
raises earnings for female laundry workers from
two dollars to 14 dollars a week - 1864
Bricklayers begin working eight-hour
days - 1867 25,000 Paterson, NJ
silk workers strike for eight-hour work day and
improved working conditions. 1,800 were
arrested over the course of the six-month
walkout, led by the Wobblies. They returned to
work on their employers’ terms -
1913
The federal minimum wage increases
to $1.60 per hour - 1968
International
Brotherhood of Firemen & Oilers merge with
Service Employees International Union - 1995
February 02
Sixteen thousand silk workers in
Paterson, NJ and 32,000 in Lawrence, Mass.
strike for shorter work week with no cut in pay
- 1919 [Women have had to fight
for their rightful place in American life --
the right to own property, to vote, to work in
"men’s" jobs. They’ve had to fight for their
place in the labor movement as well, and Rocking the Boat: Union Women’s
Voices 1915-1975 does a great job of
recounting that struggle. Brigid O
Farrell and Joyce L. Kornbluh tell the stories
of eleven dedicated union women from a wide
range of backgrounds and how they dealt with
issues of work, sex, fear, leadership and
tradition to become activists and leaders in
their unions. In the UCS bookstore
now.]
Legal secretary Iris Rivera
fired for refusing to make coffee; secretaries
across Chicago protest - 1977
The
170-day lockout (although management called it
a strike) of 22,000 steelworkers by USX Corp.
ends with a pay cut but greater job security.
It was the longest work stoppage in the history
of the U.S. steel industry - 1987
February 03 The US
Supreme Court rules the United Hatters Union
violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by
organizing a nationwide boycott of Danbury
Hatters of Connecticut - 1908
U.S.
Supreme Court upholds the Wages and Hours
(later Fair Labor Standards) Act banning child
labor and establishing the 40-hour work week -
1941
February 04
"Big Bill" Haywood born in Salt
Lake City, Utah: Leader of Western Federation
of Miners, Wobblies (IWW) founder - 1869
Rosa Parks, whose refusal to give up
her bus seat to a white man launched the 1955
Montgomery, Ala. bus boycott and the birth of
the civil rights movement, is born in Tuskeege,
Ala. - 1913
Unemployment demonstrations
take place in major U.S. cities - 1932
Thirty-seven thousand maritime workers
on the West Coast strike for wage increases -
1937 [In Offensive Bargaining: Negotiating
Aggressively in Contract Campaigns, labor
lawyer David Rosenfeld shares his arsenal of
tactics, contained in this
controlled-availability book, to deal with and
overcome employers who refuse to bargain in
good faith. Rosenfeld, partner in a well-known
California labor law firm, has represented
unions in negotiations since 1973; here he
shows you how to fight fire with fire, and then
some. In the UCS bookstore
now.]
President Barack Obama
imposes $500,000 caps on senior executive pay
for the most distressed financial institutions
receiving federal bailout money, saying
Americans are upset with "executives being
rewarded for failure." - 2009
February 05 First
daily labor newspaper, N.Y. Daily
Sentinel, begins publication -
1830
The movie Modern Times premieres.
The tale of the tramp (Charlie Chaplin) and his
paramour (Paulette Goddard) mixed slapstick
comedy and social satire, as the couple
struggled to overcome the difficulties of the
machine age, including, unemployment and
nerve-wracking factory work, and get along in
modern times - 1937 President Bill Clinton
signs the Family and Medical Leave Act.
The law requires most employers of 50 or more
workers to grant up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave
for a family or medical emergency - 1993
In what turns out to be a bad business
decision, Circuit City fires 3,900 experienced
sales people because they're making too much in
commissions. Sales plummet. Six years later it
declares bankruptcy. Duh. - 2003
Member Tip
Protection From
Retaliation
If
you think you're being retaliated against for
union activity, be aware that there
sometimes is a difference between what you know
actually occurred and what you can prove as a
matter of law. You’d be kidding yourself
if you thought that there’s never been an
instance in which a worker was in fact
retaliated against for having engaged in
behavior that is legally protected but was
unable to prove that the retaliation took
place. Still, don’t let this prevent you
from asserting your rights. There have
been plenty more instances where the agency
charged with enforcing a law moved aggressively
against an employer trying to prevent an
employee from asserting rights under that
law. After all, if all employees are
successfully intimidated into not using the
provisions of the law, that agency becomes
useless.
The
local bar was so sure that its bartender was
the strongest man around that they offered a
standing $1000 bet: The bartender would squeeze
a lemon until all the juice ran into a glass,
and hand the lemon to a patron. Anyone who
could squeeze one more drop of juice out would
win the money. Over the years, many people had
tried but nobody could do
it. One
day a scrawny little man came into the bar,
wearing thick glasses and a polyester suit, and
said in a tiny squeaky voice "I'd like to try
the
bet."
After the laughter had died down, the bartender
said OK, grabbed a lemon, and squeezed away.
Then he handed the wrinkled remains of the rind
to the little man. The crowd's laughter turned
to total silence as the man clenched his fist
around the lemon and six drops fell into the
glass.
Stunned, the bartender paid the $1000, and
asked the little man "What do you do for a
living? Are you a lumberjack, a weight-lifter,
or
what?"
The man replied: “I negotiate union contracts
for
management.”
Workers facing financial difficulty due
to strike or furlough may be eligible for two
new grants from Union Plus. The Union Plus Job
Loss Grant has also been expanded to help even
more members. Union Plus Credit Card holders
who are on strike or locked out for 30 or more
consecutive days may apply for a $250 payment
made directly to their credit card accounts
under the new Union Plus Strike Grant. Union
members or their spouses who have been
furloughed from their jobs for 15 days or more
within a six-month period can receive a
one-time $250 payment made directly to their
Union Plus Credit Card with the new Union Plus
Furlough Grant. Also, the time to apply for a
$250 Job Loss Grant has been expanded from six
months to 12 months to allow members more time
to learn of the grant and apply for it. “These
grants are part of the Union SAFE program from
Union Plus that has provided some $5 million to
assist eligible union members facing hardships
due to layoffs, hospital costs, disability,
mortgage payment problems and high college
costs,” says Union Plus. “Through these new and
expanded programs, Union Plus will help even
more union families.” Click here for more
information.
Internet Help for
Seniors
(and those caring for
them)
Click here for websites that can
help seniors and caregivers find health,
housing and community support
information.
Guide to
African American
Heritage
Sites in
Prince
George's County
For
over 300 years, African Americans have raised
families and built communities that have been
vital to the growth and development of Prince
George's County, Maryland and its
history. They have established
neighborhoods and built physical structures,
many of which survive in the midst of the
County's ever changing landscape. This
Guide invites you to take a visual journey to
those African American historic sites and
buildings that offer guided or self-guided
tours.
lean
more...
Much has been
written and much has been said about the right
of self-determination. Yet, in the quiet
corridors of public education institutions,
most administrators and supervisors have become
passive participants in those issues that most
positively and/or negatively impact their
livelihood.
Swirling around
you are the national, state, and local tides of
"accountability" for which you have had little
or no input. Nevertheless, the
implications of these measures have serious
implications/penalties attached to them.
Those of you who are deemed "unsuccessful" will
certainly have to justify your continued
service, in whatever position you now
hold.
While no one
should shrink away from accountability, as
such, those who are charged with evaluating
your efforts ought to be held to a standard
reflective of documented professional high
quality support! These "enablers" should
have some evidence of "personal" success on
which they can legitimately offer guidance, as
well as submit an end-of-year evaluation of
your efforts.
You have a
responsibility to get involved in those
processes, both politically and
organizationally, that determine the quality of
your professional life. Individuals who
express an understanding of your jobs, and of
your aspirations, and who run and/or running
for political office, need to be supported by
you. However, these same individuals need
to understand the strength of you and of your
organization to impact them at the polls!
Blind acceptance of "whomever" is elected does
not serve your purposes.
Waiting for your
"proverbial" ship to come in is not a good
professional strategy for success (if and when
your ship comes in, you might be at the
airport). You must be proactive in
expressing your needs, as those needs are
peculiar to the members of this Union.
"Silent Night" might be an appropriate song for
celebrating a revered holiday, but "silent
voices" can never be appropriate for bringing
about a desired change. Get involved, on
your terms ... or else others will determine
your term of
involvement
Play: "Can't Scare
Me: The Story Of Mother
Jones"
Where George
Mason University's Center for the Arts
When Feb 17
starts at 2:00 pm
A
new play, “Can’t Scare Me: The Story of Mother
Jones,” after a successful run at Washington,
D.C.’s Atlas Performing Arts Center will run
again at George Mason University’s Center for
the Arts Feb. 17, 2012, at 8p. Written and
performed by OBIE Award-winner Kaiulani Lee, it
portrays labor activist Mother Jones and the
early days of the American Labor Movement.
Mother Jones “was called ‘the most dangerous
woman in America,’ and “educated, agitated, and
organized on behalf of child laborers, coal
miners, steel workers, and all working people.”
She is the inspiration and namesake of the
contemporary magazine by the same
name.
February 17 at
2p and 8p February 18 at
8p February 19 at
2pm
Click here for more information and
to order
tickets.
Did you know Necco Sweethearts,
See’s Candy, and some Hershey Kisses are made
by your fellow union members? Sweets for
your Valentine can be even sweeter when they’re
union-made! This Valentine's Day, support
fellow workers by buying union-made-in-America
treats.
meets in Annapolis each year for
90 days to act on more than 2300 bills
including the State's annual budget. The 430th
Session began January 11, 2012 and adjourns
April 9, 2012. The General Assembly has
47 Senators and 141 Delegates elected from 47
districts. Legislative information on the
Assembly's website is updated continuously
during the Session.
Dr. Bonita Coleman-Potter,
Deputy Superintendent and Mr. Matthew
Stanski, Chief Financial
Officer joined ASASP members at its
General Membership Meeting to discuss and
answer your questions regarding Student Based
Budgeting. Click here to view their PowerPoint
Presentation
On January 25, 2012, The Hill published
a letter AFSA submitted in response to Juan
Williams’ op-ed in support of school
choice.
From
Diann Woodard, President of the American
Federation of School Administrators
(AFSA).
The
failure of our education system lies not within
the walls of the public schools that serve
children in crisis, but with the policymakers
and policies in place that ignore the
fundamental causes of low student achievement:
unfair funding formulas, poverty and unproven
education policies.
When people think
about the role that unions play, the first
thing that comes to mind is negotiating over a
contract. These collective bargaining
agreements deal with what are known as the
“terms and conditions of employment.”
This is unionism at its core: employees
banding together to fight for more money, get
decent health care and other benefits, and gain
more control over many other areas of their
day-to-day working
lives.
A
boss goes in to see a psychologist. He says,
"It seems I can't get along with my employees.
Can you help me, you lazy
slob?"
Eternal Vigilance
Is
The Price of
Liberty
Don’t make the
mistake of thinking that the existence of
rights on a page somewhere means that you’ll
always be able to count on those
protections. Rights that aren’t exercised
can in fact disappear over time; you can lose
what you don’t protect. So you need to
know where your rights come from, and how to
use your union to protect them. In
practical terms, this means that when your
employer breaks the rules, you need to make
sure that your union steward knows about
it. A steward’s job is to be the “eyes
and ears” of the union, but a steward can’t be
everywhere at once, and that’s why individual
members have the responsibility to alert the
steward if they see a problem. That way,
the union/employer structures that are in place
can be used to prevent changes for the worse in
the day-to-day conditions of the
workplace.
ASASP Members, your Board
of Directors are your stewards.
Call any of them or call the ASASP office
- keep the Union apprised of what's
going on.
Remember, we don't know
and, therefore, can't jump into
action, until YOU let us know what's
happening!
"Why should we get
involved? Why should my child learn about
what happened to workers a hundred years
ago? If these children don’t understand
and appreciate the struggles of their parents,
grandparents and great-grandparents, they may
be doomed to fight the same battles over
again."
-- Fred Kaltenstein, Labor
Educator
Unit II and Unit
III
SENIORITY
ASASP WILL NOT ALLOW THE BOARD
OF EDUCATION TO IGNORE OUR NEGOTIATED
AGREEMENTS. WE WILL TAKE WHATEVER
ACTION IS NECESSARY TO DEAL WITH ANY
UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICE.
an injury to
one
is
an injury to
all!
Q
If I am RIFfed,
what then is the status of my
pension and any retirement
funds?
A
Per Human Resources, the pension
remains with the Maryland State
Retirement System (MSRS). If you have
less than 5 years, you may withdraw your
funds. However, you should
probably wait to withdraw your funds
until you secure another position.
If you accept another position with an employer
that participates with MSRS. you can
continue to contribute to the pension
system.
NOT
a Spectator
Sport
Unions are far more than a kind of
employment insurance policy for working
people. Plenty of union members and union
officials have learned the hard way that when
workers come to think of their union as a
business that provides service rather than a
group of people banding together to fight for
common interests, the union quickly loses the
clout and credibility needed to defend and
advance the members’ interests. When an
employer looks and sees only a small handful of
paid union staff or elected union leaders, and
no one standing behind them, pretty soon the
employer starts thinking that “the union” isn’t
really much to contend with. And the
truth is, that’s right.
What one state
could not get alone, what one miner against a
powerful corporation could not achieve, can be
achieved by the
union.
--Mary H.
Jones
ASASP is a labor union
-- we purpose to give our
members a voice in decisions that affect their
jobs. Among other
items, we negotiate for wages, health benefits
and better working conditions. Unionized
workers get more pay and better benefits than
employees who do
comparable work but do not
belong to a union.
There
IS strength in
numbers - join your colleagues
NOW!
HELPING
FAMILIES
AVERT
CRISES
"When financial crisis hits home for
local union members, the Community Services
Agency of the Metro Washington Council AFL-CIO
is there to help," says CSA Executive Director
Kathleen McKirchy. "CSA assists with evictions,
utility shut-offs, empty cupboards and more.
But without your support, CSA's cupboard will
run bare!" This fall, help ensure that CSA can
continue being there for struggling families by
donating through the United
Way, Combined
Federal Campaign, DC One
Fund and other workplace fundraising
campaigns. "Please support the Community
Services Agency; all contributions are
tax-deductible," adds McKirchy. Click
here for more on how to contribute and make
a
difference.
REMINDERS
-- Evaluations - the
personnel evaluation form and job targets had
to be done by October 1 or within 30 days of
assignment. Submission or changes after
that time are not allowed.
-- Work Week, Work
Year (Section 3.02) - Unit II 11-month members
work 210 days of each fiscal year between July
1 and June 30. These days have nothing to
do with teacher work days. Day 1 is the
1st day you report to work in July or
August. Count to 210 days, then go
home.
-- Review your Personnel
File at least once a year. Call Human
Resources to make an appointment. Go
page-by-page thru your File, ensuring that
everything that needs to be there is there and
that there is nothing there that should
not be there. Be your own
inspector.
--
You are entitled to a 30-minute duty-free
lunch
-- Your position is what
you were assigned to, in writing, by Human
Resources. ONLY HR can make
personnel assignments. If a Chief,
Director, etc. attempts to give you a new
position or transfer, do not accept this and
contact
HR.
[No man in this century
has had more of an impact on the lives of
Hispanic Americans, and especially farmworkers,
than the legendary Cesar Chavez. 
[Women have had to fight
for their rightful place in American life --
the right to own property, to vote, to work in
"men’s" jobs. They’ve had to fight for their
place in the labor movement as well, and 
