Teachers Association of Long Beach

Update: Wednesday, March 25th, 2020

Good Evening… Reports coming in from the field are mixed. We continue to urge you to be patient. Online learning is a radical transition. Just two weeks ago we were still in our classrooms teaching our students. Please update us with what IS working and what IS NOT working. 

Email:
President – Chris Kelly ckelly@talb.org
Executive Director – Chris Callopy ccallopy@talb.org
Assistant Executive Director – Veronica Castillo vcastillo@talb.org

Transfers

The transfer deadline for the 2020-21 school year is March 31st. The transfer process has 4 buckets.

1st priority goes to teachers who are displaced from their site.

2nd priority goes to teachers who were displaced the previous year, did not get matched to their druthers – they get another bite out of the apple.

3rd priority goes to teachers who want a regular transfer. They have an assignment at their current site, but would like to go teach somewhere else.

4th priority goes to teachers returning from a leave of absence.

The availability of positions are determined by people retiring, not threatening to retire, but have actually turned in paperwork to retire. HRS would like to know as soon as possible when people are committed to retiring, but there is no deadline to make this decision. In a typical year, there are folks who:
1) Want the fanfare of retiring, let everyone know they are retiring and throw a party!
2) Some folks want to go quietly in the night. They close out their classroom and then notify HRS of their retirement.
3) Then there are teachers who meet with their CalSTRS counselor and determine it wouldn’t make much of a difference if they work another year. They often choose to retire right then.
4) On occasion there are a few folks, about 3 weeks before the start of the school year, who can’t bare the idea of going back to work and turn in their retirement paperwork.
5) There are people who take a leave of absence for the year. They give up their assigned site, but retain a position with the District.
6) Job shares. People who share a contract.

The District doesn’t reshuffle the deck. If you get placed at a site and a week or two later a preferred position becomes available through a recent retirement or resignation, they don’t go back into the pile of transfer requests.

Of course this is not a typical year. The last time there was a major economic shock, the Great Recession in 2008, many people put off retiring due to uncertainty and losses in their investments.

If you are displaced or are interested in a transfer, you may submit the document online through the employee portal. To provide yourself a level of security, you may also want to print the transfer paperwork, fill it out and mail it via USPS to the District.
http://www.lbschools.net/Departments/Human_Resource_Services/
Attention HRS
Transfers
1515 Hughes Way
Long Beach CA 90810
and or email a copy to the Assistant Superintendent of HRS David Zaid at dzaid@lbchools.net

In addition, there are specialized postings available, usually sent out via your lbschools.net email address or you may find them in your employee portal. In a majority of these positions, a “pony has already been picked” for this race. The flying of the position and the interview process is perfunctory. Nevertheless, sometimes there are open positions and the site is truly looking for a candidate.

Not getting an Electronic Newsletter = E-Update? Send your personal email address CLICK

An Important Message for TALB Members about Income Protection & Disability Insurance

The Standard Income Protection & Disability Insurance is currently offering an “Open Enrollment”. Basically, if we can get 169 people to sign up for income and disability insurance, The Standard will waive a physical examination or any pre-existing illness. Currently we have 124 people signed up – there is a time delay so we might actually need less than 45 applicants. We have 6 days left to make the number.
 The Standard CLICK.

Teachers are not entitled to State Disability Insurance. If you become ill, you will have access to your accrued sick leave and then 100 working days at 1/2 your pay. Income protection and Disability Insurance is a safety net. The Standard CLICK.

Update: Tuesday, March 24

Good Evening… We’ve received a variety of reports with successes and failures with “online learning”. Again, we are transitioning. Please be patient with the process.

Tonight our regularly schedule Representative Council went digital. Essentially, Reps received their “Rep-Packet” via email. Site Reps. received information pertaining to a variety of issues. Please reach out to your Site Reps. for details. There were no action items. 

TALB continues to operate. If you have questions or concerns please call the office 562-426-6433. We are experiencing a high volume of inquiries. We’ll get to everyone ASAP. 

Email:
President – Chris Kelly ckelly@talb.org
Executive Director – Chris Callopy ccallopy@talb.org
Assistant Executive Director – Veronica Castillo vcastillo@talb.org

An Important Message for TALB Members: Teachers are not entitled to State Disability Insurance

If you become ill, you will have access to your accrued sick leave and then 100 working days at 1/2 your pay. The Standard Income Protection & Disability Insurance is currently offering an “Open Enrollment” which gives TALB members with pre-existing conditions an opportunity to get income protection and disability insurance without a physician examination. This Limited Time Enrollment Opportunity ends soon. FIND OUT DETAILS and HOW TO APPLY HERE

Update: Monday, March 23

Good Evening… We know many of you had your first video-conference staff meeting today. We are in a very fluid situation and are not necessarily wed to any platform or tool. Programming will evolve. 

Today’s Q & A

How many hours are we supposed to put in a day?
Per contract – 8 hours. Though your average teacher puts in 10-12 hours including weekends, we know you are spending countless hours perseverating on how all of this is going to work. You are earning your pay. Back when things were normal, typically we would see 5-6 hours of direct instruction to students, depending on grade level. The remaining time was to be used to conference with parents/students, plan, grade etc. TALB is recommending, “taking it easy”. The level of engagement from parents and students will vary as we transition to a virtual classroom. As we monitor our “self-care” we cannot take on a herculean task without a transitional period.

Why can’t we use Zoom for conferencing?
There have been reports that some sites are not allowed to use Zoom as a video conferencing platform. The platform has been hacked by trolls and with any service that is “free”, it isn’t really free. There are concerns with what data will be harvested along with cookies being installed on hardware. This story in the New York Times might explain the concern better.

Important Upcoming Dates

3/24/2020 – Rep. Council – 
Reps will receive the “rep packet” via their personal email. We are soliciting input affecting rank and file members. Questions and concerns should be passed along to Site Reps, TALB Executive Board & Staff directly. Electronic Membership Support CLICK

3/24/2020 – Runoff Elections – You should receive an electronic ballot for our runoff elections. Please vote. Your voice makes us stronger!

3/26/2020 – TALB E-Board Meeting @ 4:30 P.M.

An Important Message for TALB Members: Teachers are not entitled to State Disability Insurance

If you become ill, you will have access to your accrued sick leave and then 100 working days at 1/2 your pay. The Standard Income Protection & Disability Insurance is currently offering an “Open Enrollment” which gives TALB members with pre-existing conditions an opportunity to get income protection and disability insurance without a physician examination. This Limited Time Enrollment Opportunity ends soon. FIND OUT DETAILS and HOW TO APPLY HERE

Update: Friday, March 20th, 2020

LBUSD is extending all school closures until May 3, 2020. Paid status will continue.

http://www.lbschools.net/Departments/Newsroom/article.cfm?articleID=2844

Last night Governor Newsom directed ALL “non-essential” residents of the State of California to stay home, “Safer at Home”. Public employees, including teachers, speech pathologists, librarians, nurses and itinerant teachers are considered essential. Along with public safety, gas station attendants, grocery store clerks, truck drivers and others are considered “essential”. There should be no disruption in supply lines for food and medicine. Per the Governor’s order, the TALB office is now “virtual”. The Executive Director will be in the office intermittently to check on the safety and security of Association property and assets until the Governor’s directive is lifted.

We’ve received reports that some members have attended online video conferences / webinars. As expected there were technical difficulties.

In addition, we’ve received a few reports of Administrators/Principals being rude and threatening to dock sick leave if teachers do not respond timely to emails or phone calls. This is not an edict from the District, but a few rogue independent operators. Please report any similar behavior to the office immediately.

Here is information related to using LBUSD laptops from home:

PCs – Teachers with PC should be able to login from home. If they have never done this before, there is an extra step (to click on an icon). The Help Desk has been taking calls from staff about this already and can assist any teacher.

Macs – A teacher must have requested that their Mac be set up for “mobility” before it can be used off of the LBUSD network. This task requires that a TISB tech and the teacher be at the computer at the same time to enable mobility for that teacher on that device. This task cannot be completed unless the Mac is attached the LBUSD network and therefore cannot be accomplished when the teacher is at home.

During our school closure, teachers with Macbooks who need “mobility” mode setup can contact the Help Desk (x8411 or HelpDesk in Outlook) to set up an appointment at the Administration Building and have this done. The process takes about 5 minutes.

In regards to webinars / video conferencing – Here are some tips: 

1) Be sure to check your background. Everyone will be able to see your disposition along with your living conditions. Some video conferencing will allow you to block the camera (some folks use sticky notes to cover the camera). YOU WILL DEFINITELY WANT TO “MUTE”. Unless you are asked to speak, staying on mute will stop ambient noise. Your kids, loud relatives/friends, music etc. will get picked up by the microphone and create a cacophony of sound while on the video conference.

2) Our regularly scheduled Representative Council, 3/24/2020 has been cancelled. However we will be sending out the Rep. Packet – with all of the reports via the internet to elected Reps. Check your email Monday afternoon for materials. There are no action items, most of the material will be informational.

3) CTA has created a support group for educators via Facebook, you may want to give it a look: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ctacovid19

4) This national disaster is moving very fast. As best you can, be patient, loving and understanding. This too shall pass, we don’t know when, but it will.

Update: Thursday, March 19, 2020

This morning TALB officials met with Superintendent Chris Steinhauser and Steve Rockenbach, Employee Relations Director, in person (honoring social distancing) to discuss the evolving situation in LBUSD.

1) All members should receive an email from their site managers / principals regarding online staff meetings / webinars. If you do not hear from your administrator / principal by tomorrow afternoon, please email them or call your work site to ask for an update.

2) Online standards based instructional materials for teachers will roll out or attempt to be explained at this staff video conference to be held no later than Monday, March 23rd. Teachers will not be expected to go to their worksite. *The one caveat would be if you do not have technology at home – computer / internet access. This should be made known to your principal now via email or phone call. Teachers may choose to pick up this technology or ask if the principal will deliver to their residence. 
For our Speech Pathologists, Librarians, Music Teachers, Nurses, & Itinerant Teachers – Central Office has not sorted out a specific plan as of this writing, however if you are being asked to attend your sites webinar / video conference please plan on attending. In addition, if you are directed to do things which you feel are untenable or unsafe please contact the office immediately.

THIS IS AN EXPERIMENT
There will be hiccups, there will be technical difficulties. There will be frustration. Please keep your sense of humor as we transition from a classroom to Internet based learning. Some sites may be making packets (hard-copy) for students, but that is not a requirement of the teachers. Site Admin./Principals will have to sort that out. You do not have to give your personal cell phone number to your administrator, nor call parents with your landline or cell phone number. Communication with parents should be through your lbusd.net email address during your site working hours.

Looking into the tea leaves… The District is attempting to get some form of learning in place between now and 4/20/2020, because it is highly likely that schools will be closed for the remainder of the year. This is not set in stone, nor has the final decision been made, however, people need to wrap their head around the possibility that schools will not resume until the fall. Keeping in mind that the Spanish Flu of 1918 was an 18 month disaster. We don’t know if covid-19 will go away during the summer.

There is a real possibility that covid-19 could become more virulent when it gets warmer or reappear with a vengeance in the fall. Folks are going to have to think long term and plan on teaching via the Internet for the foreseeable future. NOT SAYING THIS WILL HAPPEN. Just trying to get people to not be surprised if it does.

3) Teachers who are 65 years old or older and teachers with underlying health conditions received letters they will be placed on administrative leave. This directive is under review. It would appear the District is attempting to be proactive with Health Department and CDC guidelines and recommendations, which by the way are very fluid and evolving. If this classification of employees are well enough at home to work, they shouldn’t be on leave. Stay posted for further developments.

4) The President of TALB and Area Executive Board members will be calling members. The goal is to determine if members are getting their basic needs met – food & medicine. TALB is working with city officials to identify resources for our members who are experiencing shortages. Leadership will also inquire if you have Disability Insurance. Teachers are not entitled to State Disability Insurance. If you become ill, you will have access to your accrued sick leave and then 100 working days at 1/2 your pay. The Standard Disability Insurance is currently offering an “Open Enrollment” which gives members with pre-existing conditions an opportunity to get disability insurance without a physician examination. The Standard Disability CLICK.

5) Bargaining. We are working on an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) that will codify these “working condition” changes due to the pandemic.

6) The office is now closed for walk-in membership support and public inquiries. However the office will still be open for phone calls and emails. Please be patient. The office is being inundated with calls and emails. We will return every inquiry. Be safe. Many people are not taking this pandemic seriously.

Update: Wednesday, March 18th, 2020

There is quite a bit of misinformation and confusion out there…

1) Members on contract will remain in paid status with benefits and CalSTRS contributions.  Did you get a letter like this?

2) Members who are 65, pregnant or have other underlying health conditions that may make them more susceptible to illness have received notice of being placed on administrative leave. This is not punitive. Essentially, the District is looking at what groups of workers may return to work in some capacity and which one’s will HAVE to work from home or may not be able to work at all. This is leading to more confusion as the CDC is stating that no groups of 10 people or more should not be in proximity. We are working on clarity from the District.

To that end, please watch the March 18 LB Board of Education Meeting via YouTube https://youtu.be/EHGyp6jxzL8

3) TALB Leadership will be calling site Reps & rank and file members over the next couple of days. The intent is to see how our members are adjusting. They will be asking if you have technology to work from home (computer that works, Internet access, etc.) We also have concerns that we don’t end up with sites becoming “independent operators”. Please report what directives are being given by your site administrators, if any.

4) REMAIN CALM – Please exercise “self-care”. While we certainly want our members to be up-to-date in all matters, you may want to consider “rationing” the consumption of news and social media. All indicators point to this crisis escalating before it reaches a plateau.

5) The office closed at 5:00 p.m. today (March 18) for “walk-in” membership services and public inquiries. AGAIN, the office will remain open during business hours for phone calls and emails through this pandemic. 

PLEASE be sure to tell folks to watch the School Board Meeting on You Tube to stay up to day on what’s happening. https://youtu.be/EHGyp6jxzL8