Presentation to the VCCCD Board of Trustees
November 12, 2019
I’m Paulette Freedenberg Johnson and I worked at Ventura College for over 27 years. I’m not speaking for the Retiree exec (even though I know them pretty well), but as someone who communicates with many of the 700 retirees every day and hear how they feel about what you are doing here.
My goal is to represent them and make it clear that the retirees DO NOT support a change to CalPERS, and here’s why:
- We know what’s in every contract since the first contract. There is someone in our group who served on every negotiation team…on both sides. Our group has a collective memory that you could never have, with membership that includes Chancellors, all Presidents, every manager, and every person who ever worked and retired from the District.
Do you think we have forgotten what we agreed to? What YOU agreed to?
- We know more than you do right now…..because we’ve done the research and you haven’t. We know how all of your proposed plans compare to our existing ones and how and why they fall short.We know what other college districts think of CalPERS because we called them. We know the operational and financial weaknesses of CalPERS. We know why so many Districts are trying to get out of their contracts…..and how much it is costing them to do so. We know that the savings they promise disappear in practice….how Districts have to hire extra staff because CalPERS provides no access or support.
We know that it will cost you MORE to be with CalPERS and why. Do you?
We believe in our contract rights and the 2010 agreement and we are willing to go to the mat to protect them.
We have no problem opposing you with legal action if you do not honor your legal agreements with us. You cannot REWRITE our agreement….you cannot rewrite history.
- You should not underestimate who you are dealing with:We are professionals, with experience, institutional knowledge, and deep connections in this community and throughout the entire state.
We know how to use media, news outlets, and the internet to bring our concerns to the public if we need to.
We have fought to earn our rights before, have put everything on the line for our contracts every single negotiation, and have been willing to take a stand when we need to. Fighting for our rights is a skill we forged our entire careers and we haven’t forgotten how to do it now.
Conclusion:
So what I’m telling you here is that we, all 700 of us, will oppose what you are trying to do here. We do not trust CalPERS and you shouldn’t either.
You would be wise to give us the opportunity to show you how this decision will be costly to the District in ways you apparently haven’t already discovered for yourself.
We are willing to help you understand what you’re getting all of us into. If you choose to ignore this offer, if you do not honor your agreements and contracts with the retirees, you will energize and mobilize 700 people against what you have done.
Paulette Freedenberg Johnson
