June 2014
The regularly scheduled meeting of the Board occurred on Tuesday, 6/17/14, and went from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm.
We now have a new post office box: Post Office Box 26598, Los Angeles CA 90026. Please address all correspondence to this address.
Pursuant to our affiliation agreement with AFSCME and at their expense, AFSCME has agreed to provide us with resources to facilitate our communication with our members and the public, including the County. Director Eric Siddall reported on his efforts to retain firms specializing in communications, and by the next ADDA Board meeting on Tuesday, July 15, the goal is to retain one for 6 months. The choice seems to be between Cerrell Associates, a Los Angeles public affairs, public relations, political consulting, and government relations firm specializing in advocacy and election campaigns; or Englander, Knabe & Allen, a Southern California firm with experience, ties and relationships with local, state and federal government, elected officials and their staff, who may be able to help influence and assist us in developing effective strategies to deal with legislative and political issues.
The Board approved the creation of plaques to bestow on all those DDA judicial candidates who the ADDA endorsed and who were successful in the primary elections. Director Bobby Grace will be working on this project and will be sending out congratulations letters to all successful candidates.
Vice President James Bozajian is working on preparations for an ADDA forum for the 3rd District Board of Supervisor runoff. Anyone who wants to volunteer to assist in that project please contact James.
The extent to which the ADDA will participate in a promotional party for all those recently promoted to Grade III and Grade IV positions will be discussed at our next meeting, 7/15/14. We understand there is additional time to make this decision because the promotees want to see the increased income in their checks before they commit to funding the party.
Also, believe it or not, Bobby presented to the Board a scaled down example of the scrolls that will soon be created and disseminated to past and future “DDA of the Month” recipients. I asked if those overdue scrolls will be delivered to past recipients by the next meeting, and there is hope and some assurance, after more than a year, that we may have finally broken the log jam in this effort. Thanks go to Director Bobby Grace and former Director Karen Tandler for their efforts.
The Membership Outreach Committee continues to report on their “Town Hall” meetings with DDAs throughout the County and the concerns of the many DDAs who have attended. I’m told that the anxiety of the past may be fading as we now have more than 50 new full-dues paying members as a result of these efforts, and there are several more Town Hall meetings to come.
The ADDA Board is the head of a spear that is only as strong as the demonstrable unity of the supporting membership. We can succeed in improving the Transfer Policy, the promotional process, bypassing security, and increasing our salaries only to the extent that you back us by a commitment to joining the ADDA as full dues paying members. If you are not a full dues paying member and complain that we have failed, you’re the reason why. Please join the ADDA. Contact our Business Representative, Tris Carpenter at tris@afscme36.org or Director Craig Gold.
Also, if you want to read the terms of of our current MOU, or the past and proposed new By-Laws, you can find these posted as PDF files on our website at http://www.LA-ADDA.com We’ve also decided to print a small booklet of the MOU for distribution to all members.
Per our affiliation agreement with AFSCME, the ADDA is obligated to amend our By-Laws to conform to the AFSCME International Constitution. Besides that requirement, we also need to amend the By-Laws in order to add provisions authorizing the formation of a Political Action Committee [PAC] so we can begin to raise funds to support legislation and other efforts to improve the lives of DDAs. The Board has finalized the new By-Laws, approved them, and ballots will be sent to full dues payers in the middle to latter part of July, with the expectation of ballot counting and final ratification to probably occur sometime in August.
One of the principle changes in the By-Laws is a reduction of the size of the Board. Currently, the Board consists of 21 Officers and Directors, although only 11 seats are filled with 10 seats vacant including the Secretary. Coincidentally, the new By-Laws reduce the Board to 11 Officers and Directors, and 3 independently elected Trustees that primarily are responsible for regular financial auditing of the Board.
The Board voted to approve the expenditure of funds for the purchase of conferencing call equipment in an amount less than $500.
If you are interested in being a Steward on behalf of your colleagues and want to know more about what that entails, please contact our Business Representative, Tris Carpenter at tris@afscme36.org and he will answer your questions. This is important work that you can do on behalf of your colleagues.
We are looking into the issues, if any, concerning the pay step bonus for service in Lancaster. We should hear more about this at the next meeting, 7/15/14. If you have any Information or concerns about it please contact Director Craig Gold. Hopefully, we will soon better understand the criteria and implementation of that bonus. When we know more we will send out an email update explaining what we have learned.
As per our agreement, we will be meeting with AFSCME on 7/8/14 at a Special Meeting devoted solely to discuss our concerns about our relationship to AFSCME and any outstanding complaints and dissatisfactions with their performance.
We have formed a Committee to investigate concerns with workplace medical issues affecting DDAs. That Committee is comprised of James Bozajian, Bobby Grace, and Loren Naiman. If you are interested in assisting this Committee in anyway, please contact one of them and volunteer.
In preparation for bargaining when the current MOU expires, the Communications Committee and our Treasurer James Evans will be looking into what resources AFSCME has available to examine the County Budget for funding possibilities as well as determining the actual full value of our compensation in terms of salary, corollary present benefits, and future benefits. They will also consider hiring a financial analyst to assist us.
Efforts to improve by-passing security screening by DDAs are ongoing and new avenues are being explored and considered to facilitate that. I know that DA Jackie Lacey and her Administration supports this goal. As we learn more I will let you know.
The next scheduled Board meeting is Tuesday, 7/15/14. Your Board is comprised of uncompensated volunteers. There are many committees on various topics including Committees to address improving the Transfer Policy and Promotional Process. If you have complaints, let us know. The Board can always use your help to improve the lives of all our DDA colleagues. Please consider volunteering on a committee to assist our efforts. If you have a concern, the Board is here to try and resolve or dispel that concern and will devote resources especially if it is a matter that advances the interests of all DDAs.
Bargaining for a new MOU occurs in less than a year. If you have ideas and want to help us prepare to be the most effective representatives we can be at this important opportunity, please contact me.
Marc Debbaudt
President of ADDA