Current PLP Totals, Increase to Vacation/Annual Leave Cap. Unit 10 State Scientists have been subject to PLP 2020 since July 1, 2020. As of June 1, 2021, all full-time State Scientists received another 16 hours of PLP 2020 credit, which can be requested and taken in the same manner as vacation, sick leave, or annual leave at the member’s discretion. Since the program’s start, State Scientists have been credited with a total of 192 hours of PLP 2020. Meanwhile, State Scientists’ vacation/annual leave cap has increased by the same amount, from a maximum of 640 hours in June 2020, to the current limit of 832 hours. The vacation/annual leave cap increases remain until 2025 for Unit 10.
Back in April after weeks of requesting to meet surrounding the reports of a robust and healthy State Budget, the CAPS Bargaining Team passed a package of PLP 2020 Side Letter Agreement proposals to CalHR in order to prompt them to discuss reinstating the temporarily-suspended 5% GSI and making it retroactive to July 1, 2020; and ending PLP 2020. The proposals included a new contract section, 2.1.2, Return of Suspended General Salary Increase; the deletion of 2.1.1, Contract Reopener Language; and the modification of 3.23, Personal Leave Program 2020.
CalHR recently countered these proposals, and CAPS has taken their proposals under advisement. These remain proposals in the traditional bargaining process, and, as any proposal, would need agreement from both parties to take effect.
Use your Professional Development Days Before July 1. Each fiscal year (July 1 – June 30), you are entitled to two (2) Professional Development Days (PDD) per CAPS MOU Section 15.10, which can be used before your PLP 2020 hours, pursuant to the PLP 2020 Side Letter Agreement. Your pay warrants only show hours for PDD once you’ve used the hours, meaning if you haven’t used your PDD for the Fiscal Year, nothing will show up in the leave balance. Once you have use your PDD hours, they will show up under “TRNG/DEV.” Professional Development Days do not accumulate, so use them or lose them before July 1.
Professional Development Grants Due June 30, 2021. CAPS strongly urges you to apply now for one of four $400 Professional Development Grants awarded each quarter to support members’ scientific research, education, or other career-enhancing activities the State does not fully fund.
The next deadline to apply is June 30 for grants the CAPS’ Member Benefits Committee will award in July. Applicants may seek funds for upcoming costs or expenses already incurred. (Due to COVID-19 concerns, at this time, the Committee is not considering applications to facilitate attending scheduled in-person meetings or conferences.)
CAPS makes a total of $1,600 in grants available to deserving members each quarter. Recipients are chosen in January, April, July, and October, so applications should be submitted before these months to be eligible for the subsequent selection. Once submitted, applications remain eligible for consideration for at least two quarters.
For more details about CAPS’ Professional Development Grants and how to apply for this members-only benefit, please go to capsscientists.org/application/benefits/grant. Please contact CAPS staff with questions at caps@capsscientists.org or by calling your nearest CAPS office. Don’t wait!
News Briefs.
Press release: CAPS Urges California Governor Newsom to Support Science and State Scientists – Benzinga
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 2021-22 budget plan includes significant increases to California’s public science government programs. The California Association of Professional Scientists applauds those proposals — and urges the governor to now pay competitive wages to the scientists who run those programs.
In Review. Check out what you may have missed from past CAPS Updates here:
Board of Directors’ Meeting Recap. The quarterly CAPS Board of Directors’ Meeting was held last Saturday, May 22, 2021, via Zoom. Actions by the Board of Directors included:
- Approved the Minutes of the February 20, 2021 Board Meeting.
- Approved the usage of the one-time 2020 Budget-Year Surplus to: split $50,000 between the Member Action Committee and the Representation Committee earmarked specifically for member swag; provide $3,750 to the Benefits Committee to increase the Dependent Scholarship award from $500 to $750 for 2021; to provide $51,700 to the Representation Committee earmarked specifically for member referral bonuses, associated member recruitment activities, and/or leadership training purposes; and for the remaining $155,786.99 to be placed in CAPS’ reserve accounts.
- Approved CAPS’ endorsement of Jose Luis Pacheco’s campaign for CalPERS Board of Administration in 2021.
- Approved CAPS’ opposition to the Recall of Governor Gavin Newsom in 2021.
Additionally, the Board of Directors discussed the goals set in February and how they had been organized for committee use going forward.
Read other past messages on the CAPS Website here: http://capsscientists.org/members/caps-member-updates/. The password is ChooseCAPS! – it IS case-sensitive.
Choose Unity. Choose Strength. Choose CAPS!