With contract negotiations stalled, Seattle Colleges faculty will stage a walkout Nov. 17 | West Seattle Herald / White Center News Skip to Main Content Area Friday, November 11, 2016 | Broken clouds, 60.8 °F search Letters Sign in Subscribe Contact Us Front Page News Features Sports Opinion Police Blotter Veterans Day flags go up in the Junction Members of American Legion Post 160 and their families took part ... Westside-O-Rama West Seattle Entertainment Guide Admiral Theater 2343 California Ave. S.W. 938-3456 Movie ... Sportswatch: For the week of Nov. 9-15 By Tim Clinton SPORTS EDITOR High schools Girls ... Amanda's View: Addiction, face-to-face, part two: Tricks and triggers By Amanda Knox I accelerated into the mostly empty parking ... Police Blotter Week of 11-7-16 Shed robbed on 38th Avenue S.W. Police were dispatched at 3 ... News American Legion Post 160 offers free dinner to all veterans to honor their service Veterans Day flags go up in the Junction With contract negotiations stalled, Seattle Colleges faculty will stage a walkout Nov. 17 'Braseth 42' design review meeting set for Dec.1; 6 story, 74 unit mixed use building to be built on 42nd SW. Dave Newman Insurance collecting warm clothing for the needy Lower Spokane Street closure for paving work on Harbor Island Nov. 11-13 West Seattleites get sweet ’n sour taste of city’s new proposals to create affordable housing UPDATE: ST3 vote winning in Nov. 8 election; Highline School District bond to fix schools is leading Rezoning for affordability in District 1; Highland Park Action Committee urging public involvement Eastridge Church Turkey Giveaway will donate 1500 birds to needy Nov. 19 Duwamish Longhouse Native Holiday Gift Fair set for Nov. 25-27 West Seattle Junction has plans for your Hometown Holidays On the Go - Week of 11-7-16 UPDATE: Two Junction bus shelters to be removed; Comment period now extended Councilmember Herbold shares news on HALA rezoning potentials for District 1 UPDATE: More than 1000 Sealth students vote in mock election; Results available Nov. 4 Urban Achievers do more than salute the music of Led Zeppelin CANCELLED: Lower Spokane Street closure on Harbor Island set for Nov. 4-7 West Seattle Thriftway 'Holiday Taste' will feature more than 50 vendors Nov. 3 Murray Basin CSO Update: Majority of road restoration done at 48th SW; Beach Drive fix is next High Point Library will undergo renovations; Closing temporarily Dec. 5 Upton Flats, four story 104 unit mixed use project on 35th SW gets the go ahead King County Sheriff seeking fallen officers family members Food Lifeline shows its capability at an open house for West Seattle Chamber U.S. Senator Patty Murray visits Sealth to get an eyeful of Software Engineering With contract negotiations stalled, Seattle Colleges faculty will stage a walkout Nov. 17 By Patrick Robinson 11/11/2016 updated 8 minutes ago Contract negotiations between the administration and faculty of the Seattle Colleges, which include South Seattle College have reached a deadlock and a federal mediator is coming in to resolve the conflict. Despite this, and to bring attention, and likely pressure to the mediation process a walkout by faculty is planned for Thursday, November 17 at 12:30 in front of the Olympic Hall theater. The Chancellor is scheduled to do a budget update at 1:30, Faculty member and English Instructor Mike Hickey said, "We haven't received a salary increase in seven years, our tenured faculty with PhD's can't even afford to rent an apartment in West Seattle, and meanwhile the Admin has over $20M in a reserve fund. Oh, and did I mention? The president's salary has increased 28% in those seven years. Out of 34 community and technical colleges in the state, Seattle FT faculty is ranked 14th, yet Seattle has the highest cost of living by far." The faculty members also say that the SCC student government has agreed to support them and will be in attendance at the walkout. Earnest Phillips II, APR, Executive Director Marketing and Communications for Seattle Colleges speaking on their behalf said, "We recognize and understand the challenges our employees are facing. Stagnant wages and the high cost of living in Seattle are putting pressure on all state employees working in the region. Community colleges in Seattle, Olympia, and the Tri-Cities all receive the same base funding per student. The funding formula does not account for our region’s high operating costs nor the differences in cost of living.* This is having a direct effect on the student experience and limits our ability to adjust wages. Our employees are doing similar work as other state employees across the state, and yet they are denied an opportunity to have the same quality of life. A regional pay structure, like those instituted for the highway patrol and Washington State Department of Transportation, could provide the necessary relief. *According to Salary.com, the cost of living and working in Seattle is 13.4% higher than Olympia and 20.2% higher than Richmond (near the Tri-Cities). In regard to the negotiations Seattle Colleges is in contract negotiations with the AFT Seattle union. There has been progress made on several fronts, but the two sides have not come to an agreement on all areas, one of which is salary increases. Enrollment shifts, increases in operating cost, and changes in the state’s funding model have created a perfect storm leaving Seattle Colleges with an $8 million - $10 million budget reduction over the next four years. Despite this, Seattle Colleges has offered increases of at least 11.1 percent for full-time faculty and 7.8 percent for part-time faculty over the three years of the contract (July 2016 – June 2019). At the November 4, 2016 bargaining session, the parties agreed to engage a mediator. This mediation is scheduled to begin November 18, 2016. Base funding Without going into too much complexity, the base funding per student across the state is $2,910." We encourage our readers to comment. No registration is required. We ask that you keep your comments free of profanity and keep them civil. They are moderated and objectionable comments will be removed. View the discussion thread. Please send us your news tips, photos or ideas of how we can better cover your neighborhood. Email us at WestSeattle@robinsonnews.com or TEXT news tips to 206-459-6717 Receive updates on news and events in the West Seattle neighborhood via Twitter! Web development by Freelock Computing © 2016 Robinson Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Contact Us Terms Home Delivery Media kit available on request -- contact Donao@robinsonnews.com window.fbAsyncInit = function() { FB. 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