The February Issue of the Voice is out!

Highlights:

• John Muir High School's Manny Rustin Awarded Milken Educator Award!
• Dave Berk's editorial address to the Board of Education (full text)
• Bargaining for Benefits Explained
• Budget Crisis: The Emergency Continues
• And much more...

To All UTP Members:

As of Wednesday, December 14, UTP and PUSD have not reached an agreement regarding the out-of-pocket rates for Blue Shield. However, Open Enrollment must occur no later than December 22 to avoid any disruption to coverage for members in January.

The tenthly rates for Kaiser in 2012 are NOT in question. The 2012 Kaiser rates shall be:

Single - $13.00
Two-Party - $28.00
Family - $68.00

The tenthly rates for Blue Shield remain in question. Therefore, UTP members must decide now whether to enroll in Blue Shield or not based on a range of possible Blue Shield rates in 2012. The range of possible Blue Shield rates in 2012 includes the following low and high limits for out of pocket expenses.

2012 Blue Shield POS

                    Low Range         High Range

Single:          $30.32                $70.74
Two-Party:   $61.94                $144.62
Family:         $93.97                $219.48

The two parties shall resume negotiations of Health and Welfare Benefits on February 3, 2012.

FINALLY, AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD!

 We need 5,000 signatures by Oct. 26, 2011

For the White House to review our petition demanding the repeal of the GPO and WEP!

SSFAIRNESS has created a critical petition on "We the People", a new feature on WhiteHouse.gov.  We need to remind the White House that we are still out here! Once we have 150 signatures, the petition will be listed for all people to sign, and we will be on our way.  Forward this to all your friends and family.  We need as many signatures as we can get!

 HOW TO SIGN THE PETITION AND BE COUNTED

 1.  View the petition here: http://wh.gov/4KL

 2.  On that page you will need to set up an account with the White House by providing your name and email--this prevents you from voting more than once on any one petition.

To set up an account, click on the green “Create an Account” button.  Scroll down a bit if you don’t see it on the page.

 3. Put in your name and email and decipher the scrambled letters. Once you enter that information you will be emailed a password and access link to sign the petition. Check your inbox. When you click on the link they have sent you, you will go back to their site.  Scroll down, again, if you don’t see it, and click on the box that says “Sign this Petition.”

 This site must be swamped with emails.  Please have patience if the process is slow or try again at another time.  We need your name on that petition!!!!

 PETITION TEXT

 Repeal the Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision 

and restore SS fairness for public servants!

The Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision deny 

earned Social Security benefits to more than 1.5 million Americans, mostly 

women. They were designed to cut costs for Soc. Sec. and  were hastily voted 

into law without careful study.  This has resulted in the formulas that they 

use for persons who have earned pensions from non-SS covered government jobs 

being more punitive than the SS measures that they were supposed to 

replicate.  The S.S. benefits were earned in work not related to their 

government work, or by being a dependent spouse. These govt. pensions were 

earned and are taxed differently by the Federal government.  There is no 

valid reason for linking them to Social Security.  See "More Info" 

on SSFairness.com for references to CRS and NCPSSM reports.

 
Repeal the WEP and GPO!  For more information, go to ssfairness.com.

The Communications Committee would like to wish you a restful, restorative summer break!  Enjoy the last issue of the Voice and thank you to all of you who have contributed articles, updates, photos, and insight this year!

CORRECTION: Page one should read "Among those who addressed the crowd of more than 4,000 was our own Alice Petrosian, Chief Academic Officer."

On Friday, May 13, UTP members joined thousands of LA-area educators in Pershing Square and tens of thousands of educators state-wide to draw attention to the current "State of Emergency" in education funding.  Enjoy the photos, and please forward any photos of events during the Week of Action to Marcela in the UTP office.