NEWS

ACSS President Frank Ruffino Appointed to Deputy Treasurer for Fiona Ma

On January 7, 2019, California State Treasurer Fiona Ma appointed ACSS President Frank Ruffino as Deputy Treasurer of Pension and Benefits for the State Treasurer’s Office. He accepted the position and was sworn in during Fiona Ma’s inauguration ceremony as the 34th Treasurer of the State of California. Ma has been a supporter of ACSS for many years and understands the issues facing California State managers and supervisors and other excluded employees. In return, ACSS has endorsed Ma in her campaigns and we congratulate her in her new position as State Treasurer. Ruffino and Ma have continued to build a strong professional relationship and ACSS views Ruffino’s new position as a positive step.

ACSS Executive Director Rocco Paternoster comments, “Frank’s hard work, service and dedication to ACSS including holding multiple leadership positions, has been invaluable to the members. ACSS members have enjoyed many wins over the years of Frank’s service and wish to congratulate Frank on this amazing honor and achievement he is receiving in this new appointment.”

Ruffino said, “I am humbled, honored, grateful and proud that an ACSS member has been given this special opportunity by the Treasurer to serve the State of California.”

At the next ACSS Board Meeting on January 19th, 2019, an election for the vacancies created by the departure of the Executive Vice President and President will be held among the current Board of Directors members.  

Fiona Ma was guest speaker at an ACSS Board Meeting in January 2016. Pictured here with ACSS President Frank Ruffino.

Retroactive Salary Increases for Supervisors and Managers related to BU9 and Certain Supervisory and Managerial classes related to BU10

On December 12, 2018, the Department of Human Resources (CalHR) released Pay Letter 18-35 which covers supervisory and managerial engineers, along with certain supervisory and managerial scientist classifications.  While other supervisory and managerial employees received increases on July 1, 2018, these employees did not.

Effective retroactively to July 1, 2018, S09 and M09 Excluded Employees and certain S10 and M10  classifications will receive a General Salary Increase of 4.5 percent. According to the latest information from CalHR, it is expected that this salary adjustment will be reflected in the December pay warrants. The retroactive portion is expected to be processed separately by the State Controller’s Office reflecting five months of the retroactive salary increase.

Pay Letter 18-35 also includes new provisions for longevity pay for certain employees with 20 or more years of service and geographic pay for certain employees working in Bay Area counties. These new pay differentials are provided to supervisory and managerial engineers, but not to other excluded employees. ACSS immediately approached CalHR regarding interest in extending Longevity Pay and Geographic Pay to all excluded employees.

Membership Drive Winner Donates Prize to Camp Fire Victims, ACSS Matches

Red Cross Gold Country CEO Gary Strong
with ACSS President Frank Ruffino and
ACSS Member Outreach Coordinator Charlotte Hoar.

Every year during the fall, ACSS holds a Membership Drive to encourage excluded state employees to join ACSS with a chance to win a prize. This year, the Membership Drive was held from September 24th through November 2nd and the grand prize of a 65-inch LG Smart TV would be given to one new member.

Monica MacNicholl was selected at random as this year’s winner. Monica works as a Staff Services Manager at the California Department of Rehabilitation in Sacramento and she is now a member of ACSS Chapter 502. However, Monica did not want to keep the TV prize. Instead, she wanted to donate the monetary value of the prize to the Red Cross to go to the victims of the recent Camp Fire in Paradise, CA.

The value of the TV was $1,000. ACSS decided to match the donation to donate a total of $2,000 to the American Red Cross to help Camp Fire victims. ACSS President Frank Ruffino and Member Outreach Coordinator Charlotte Hoar visited the Red Cross office in Sacramento. They met with American Red Cross (Gold Country Region) CEO Gary Strong to deliver the check in person in Sacramento.

Approximately 50,000 people* have been displaced and 14,000 homes** have been destroyed in and around the town of Paradise due to the Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire in California history that raged from November 8 through November 25th and scorched 153,000 acres. Several ACSS members were also affected by this devastating incident. ACSS is dedicated to serving members of the community by making this much-needed donation to the American Red Cross.

Frank Ruffino commented, “Monica's decision to donate her prize is a true example of an altruistic act, an unselfish concern for the welfare of others. We appreciate her for reminding all of us the spirit of giving shouldn’t be seasonal, but an everyday choice. As a result, ACSS matched her gift which provides Red Cross critically needed funds to help the victims of Camp Fire. It was a proud moment for all of us!” It is a small way that ACSS can help out the community, especially as we approach the holidays.

ACSS President Frank Ruffino hands a check to
American Red Cross Gold Country CEO Gary Strong.

*According to the LA Times
**According to CNN

CalHR Policy Update - Holiday Informal Time Off

CalHR has updated the Human Resources Manual. The policy has been updated to reflect Informal Time Off (ITO) for 2018. For most employees, the paid ITO this year will be either the business day before December 25 or January 1. Click here for more information.

ACSS Member Appreciation Meetings Coming Up!

Tis the season for ACSS Annual Member Appreciation Meetings and Dinners! Check the ACSS Events Calendar for YOUR local Chapter's meeting. Hope to see you there! 

• Tuesday December 4th - Chapter 504 at La Strada in American Canyon 
• Thursday December 6th - Chapter 505 at Peony Seafood Restaurant in Oakland
• Thursday December 6th - Chapter 508 at Angelina's Spaghetti House in Stockton
• Friday December 7th - Chapters 502 & 503 at DoubleTree Hilton in Sacramento **EVENT IS FULL**
• Friday December 7th - Chapter 512 at AJ Spurs in Grover Beach
• Tuesday December 11th - Chapter 512 at Marie Callender's in Ventura
• Thursday December 13th - Chapter 511 at Marie Callender's in Monterey Park
• Friday December 14th - Chapter 513 at Officine Buonaforchetta in San Diego

ACSS-Endorsed Candidates – 2018 General Election Results

ACSS Legislative Advocate, Ted Toppin, provides a summary of how well our ACSS-Endorsed Candidates fared in the recent General Election:

Election Day results were very positive for ACSS and ACSS-endorsed candidates. Overall, the ACSS candidate or ballot measure was successful in 99 of the 103 races that have been determined thus far. Six races are still too close to call.

Statewide Races
In races that were decided yesterday, seven out of 8 of ACSS’ endorsed candidates for statewide office – including gubernatorial candidate Gavin Newsom – were victorious. Newsom will be sworn in as the next Governor of California on January 7, 2019. Other winners were Xavier Becerra for Attorney General, Betty Yee for Controller, Fiona Ma for Treasurer, Alex Padilla for Secretary of State, Malia Cohen for BOE District 2, and Joel Anderson for BOE District 4. The races for Insurance Commissioner and Superintendent of Public Instruction are too close to call at this time. Unfortunately, ACSS-endorsed Senator Dr. Ed Hernandez was unsuccessful in his race for Lieutenant Governor.

Legislative Races
In legislative races, the ACSS-endorsed candidate prevailed in 92 and lost in 3 of the races in which ACSS took a position. Three Assembly seats and one Senate seat are still up in the air.

In the Assembly, the ACSS candidate won in 77 races and lost in 1. In contested open seat contests, ACSS was 4-1, including victories by Buffy Wicks (D-Berkeley) in AD 15, Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) in AD 30, James Ramos (D-Inland Empire) in AD 40, and Tasha Boerner Horvath (D-Carlsbad) in AD 76.

In AD 38, ACSS-endorsed candidate Dante Acosta (R-Santa Clarita) is neck and neck with his opponent Christy Smith. With only 1% of votes separating them, it is too close to say who will come out on top. In AD 60, ACSS-endorsed Sabrina Cervantes (D- Corona) is essentially tied with her Republican challenger Bill Essayli. Similarly, ACSS candidate Matthew Harper (R-Huntington Beach) holds only a narrow lead over Democrat Cottie Petrie-Norris in AD 74. The one unsuccessful ACSS-endorsed candidate was Josh Lowenthal (D-Huntington Beach) who was defeated in AD 72 by Republican Tyler Diep.

Of the 18 Senate races in which ACSS took a position, 15 candidates were victorious, 2 candidates lost, and one is still too close to call. In open seat races, ACSS was 2-1. ACSS-endorsed candidate Maria Elena Durazo (D-Los Angeles) was victorious in SD 24, as was Brian Jones (R-Santee) in SD 38. Mike Eng (D-Los Angeles) was defeated in the race for SD 22. ACSS-endorsed candidate Anna Caballero (D-Salinas) is holding on to a narrow 1% lead over her opponent in SD 12 with votes still to be counted. In SD 14, ACSS-endorsed Senator Andy Vidak (R-Hanford) was defeated by his Democratic challenger Melissa Hurtado.

Statewide Ballot Measures
The ACSS Board voted to oppose Proposition 6 (2017 Gas Tax Repeal Initiative), which failed on Election Day.

Click here for complete election results for ACSS-endorsed candidates. Open seat candidates are in bold.

Every Vote Counts! Election Day is Approaching…

Midterm Elections are coming up soon. Don’t forget to vote on or before November 6th. Every vote counts!

Vote By Mail
Early voting in the Midterm Election has begun. Your ballot should have arrived in your mailbox already. Make sure you fill out your ballot completely and mail it in or drop it off at a designated ballot drop off location on or before November 6th. The last day to register to vote is Monday October 22, 2018. Vote-by-mail ballot requests must be submitted by October 30, 2018.

Candidate Endorsements and the PAC
ACSS has done a thorough job researching, interviewing and supporting legislative candidates that are best-suited to benefit Excluded Employees. ACSS-Endorsed candidates can be found on our ACSS Political Program Candidate Endorsement page. If you would like to help candidates in your area, we have provided their contact website to make it easy for you. In addition, donating to the ACSS Political Action Committee (PAC) helps ensure that the right legislators are in office to support the issues that matter to you most, like:

• Salary compaction
• Pension protection
• Fair working conditions for supervisors, managers, and excluded State employees
• And more!

Your Vote Matters!
As we have seen over the years, elections are won or lost with just a few votes, so every single vote matters in this election. Also, you can take a look at the California 2018 Voter Guide for information on the propositions. YOUR VOTE MATTERS!

ACSS and CalHR Discuss Salary and Benefit Improvements

On October 1, 2018, CalHR Acting Director Adria Jenkins-Jones met with ACSS President Frank Ruffino, ACSS Executive Director Rocco Paternoster, ACSS Director of Representation Nellie Lynn and ACSS Legislative Advocate Ted Toppin to discuss improvements to the salary and benefits of excluded state employees.

“It was a pleasure to meet with the Association of California State Supervisors, and I look forward to working with ACSS as CalHR’s Acting Director,” Adria Jenkins-Jones said. “I have enormous respect and appreciation for the state’s managers and supervisors and the jobs they do. They drive California state government and ensure that we fulfill our mission to serve the public.”

ACSS acknowledged the progress made under the Brown administration and previous CalHR Director Richard Gillihan. In addition to General Salary Increases in 2017 and 2018, the Administration provided excluded employees a 3% General Salary Increase (GSI) effective on October 1, 2016, as well as various special salary adjustments to address salary compaction. The October 2016 GSI was a departure from previous practice by providing excluded employees a GSI before several rank and file Unions reached collective bargaining agreements. ACSS is committed to continuing to work with CalHR and the next administration to ensure excluded employees receive equitable and appropriate salary and benefit improvements.

ACSS advocated for a minimum 10% pay differential between excluded employees and their staff. We also provided salary data supporting ACSS’ request for special salary adjustments for various excluded classifications to address salary compaction and pay parity for excluded employees.

Additionally, we advocated for salary increases for excluded employees related to bargaining units 06, 09 and 10. Rank and File employees in those units recently reached new labor contracts (called Memorandum of Understanding or MOUs) with salary increases, in which ACSS urged CalHR to pass on those benefits to excluded employees.

In addition, ACSS reiterated a request for disability insurance benefit improvements and paid family leave. CalHR confirmed they will notice and meet with ACSS under the Meet and Confer process on a proposal to provide state managers and supervisors with paid family leave benefits by July 2019. Governor Brown’s veto message on ACSS supported AB 3145 revealed plans to provide paid family leave benefits for excluded state employees.

More information on AB 3145 and paid family leave can be found here.

As always, ACSS will provide updates as information is available about specific salary and benefit improvements for excluded employees.

Governor’s Veto: Paid Family Leave for Supervisors and Managers on Its Way

Although Governor Brown has vetoed ACSS backed legislation, the veto message makes clear our collective voice has been heard. AB 3145 would have given individual supervisors and managers the option of selecting enrollment in the State Disability Insurance Program or choosing to remain in the current Non-Industrial Disability Insurance or Enhanced Non-Industrial Disability Insurance programs. This individual choice would have allowed employees to participate in the program that best met their needs. In his veto message, Governor Brown noted the Department of Human Resources (CalHR) “is developing a plan to offer paid family leave benefits to state managers and supervisors by July 1, 2019.”

ACSS supported AB 3145 and the option of allowing individual supervisors and managers the choice to elect to participate in the State Disability Insurance Program (SDI) in large part because of the Paid Family Leave Program. SDI carries with it an employee contribution, but provides greater benefits, the most significant being coverage by the Paid Family Leave Program, which provides up to six weeks of partial pay to care for a sick family member or bond with a new child.

ACSS will be meeting with CalHR as it develops the details of the new paid family leave benefits program for supervisors, managers and confidential employees and will keep you informed about the new program.

Read Governor Brown’s AB 3145 Veto Message here.

Update: Post and Bid Policy for Supervising Correctional Cooks (CDCR)

Earlier this year, ACSS submitted a proposal to CDCR which would allow Supervising Correctional Cooks to secure assignments/positions based on seniority. On September 13, 2018, ACSS met with CDCR to discuss various issues that affect excluded employees.  We are pleased to report CDCR responded favorably to the Post and Bid proposal and is making progress toward a Post and Bid Process Policy for Supervising Correctional Cooks. We will keep you apprised of the progress, including possible implementation dates which could come in the early part of next year.  For further questions regarding this matter, please contact your ACSS Labor Relations Representative.