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CSUSB Faculty Furlough Plan

The agreement between the CFA and the Chancellor’s Office requires most faculty to identify 18 days during the academic year when they would be on furlough (the exception for 12 month faculty is dealt with below). The memorandum of understanding includes provisions that faculty may take no more than one furlough day per week, with the exception of one period of up to four days in a single week during any 52-week sequence. With that exception, faculty may not take more than two furlough days in any month.

The key principles in developing the CSUSB plan are:

1. to limit the disruption to the students’ educational experience, to the extent possible;
2. to maintain the normal operation of departments, to the extent possible
3. to provide considerable flexibility for individual faculty in how the furlough is implemented, within the constraints set by the MOU;
4. to keep record keeping as simple as possible.

The MOU and subsequent interpretations give the President the authority to close the campus for two days per quarter on instructional days. This plan identifies six days during the academic year in which classes would be cancelled across the campus. These are:

Fall Quarter: Thursday, October 22 and Monday, November 30;
Winter Quarter: Friday, February 12 and Tuesday, March 2; and
Spring Quarter: Tuesday, April 27 and Friday, May 28

These would be “state budget closure days”. It is anticipated that faculty will provide assignments (such as reading assignments, simulations, or continued research and work on papers) for classes that would otherwise meet on those days and any other teaching days taken as part of a furlough.

Faculty will choose the additional twelve furlough days in consultation with the department chair. Scheduling of these days shall be by mutual agreement between the faculty member and the department chair, with the Dean of the College reviewing all faculty furlough plans. In cases of mutual agreement between the faculty member and the Department Chair, the Dean may refer the plan back to the chair and the faculty member for further consideration if it fails to meet the four key principles, outlined above. In this case the Dean will provide a written explanation. In the absence of mutual agreement, the Dean shall designate the furlough days for the faculty member based on the compelling operational needs of the campus and will explain those needs in writing to both the faculty member and Chair.

Among the dates we would ask faculty to consider as potential furlough days are the four days within the academic calendar on which the campus will be closed for staff furloughs. These dates are: Friday, September 18, 2009; Friday, January 8; and Friday, April 2. Additional dates within the academic calendar that are not scheduled days for teaching include: Wednesday-Friday, September 16-18 (Staff Furlough Day on the 18th), Tuesday-Wednesday, September 22-23, Wednesday-Friday, January 6-8 (Staff Furlough Day on the 8th), and days during exam weeks.

Faculty with twelve month appointments will be required to take 24 furlough days per year.

The furlough provisions for grant-funded faculty are laid out in the MOU.

This plan has been developed in consultation with the Faculty Senate Executive Committee and the College Deans and is intended to strike a suitable balance between the four principles enunciated above.

ATTACHMENT 1

Implementation Guidelines for Faculty Furloughs

The following guidelines and principles are intended to assist campuses in implementing the furlough program for faculty members, according to the terms of the agreement between the California State University and the California Faculty Association. The furlough program for AY faculty begins with the 2009/10 academic year, while for 12 month faculty the program begins August 1, 2009.

Relevant provisions from the CFA furlough agreement:
The following provisions of the agreement between the CSU and CFA are most relevant to the scheduling and assignment of furlough days.

3. Furlough Days

a. The President may designate specific furlough days as campus closure days, or partial campus closure days (including reduced administrative services days). For instructional faculty unit employees, campus closures or partial closures above shall be limited to six (6) days. Scheduling of additional furlough days shall be by mutual agreement of the faculty employee and the appropriate administrator. Absent mutual agreement, the appropriate administrator shall designate the furlough days for the faculty employee based on compelling operational needs of the campus and shall explain those needs in writing to the faculty unit employee.

b. Full-time Academic Year faculty unit employees shall be subject to eighteen (18) furlough days during the 2009/2010 academic year. The pattern of days shall include no more than nine (9) furlough days per semester and six (6) furlough days per quarter. At CSU Stanislaus the pattern of days shall include no more than eight (8) days in the fall term, two (2) days in the winter term, and eight (8) days in the spring term.

Guidelines:

1. As provided for in the agreement with CFA, campus presidents have the discretion to designate up to six days when classes are scheduled and faculty are teaching as State Budget Closure Days (SBCD).
2. Each campus will use uniform language to describe these closures (SBCD).
3. Presidents have the discretion to determine the SBCD in the context of the overall furlough guidelines.
4. Presidents will ensure that these closures do not result in a disproportionate impact on any particular course or courses. That is, these closure days should not all fall on the same day of the week within a term.
5. Provosts and Deans will work with faculty to ensure that all course goals and learning objectives are achieved for any course which is affected by a SBCD.
6. The priority of the university is student instruction. Maintaining student instruction and ensuring that course goals and learning objectives are met would constitute a compelling operational need (per section 3a of the furlough agreement), and these priorities should be taken into consideration when seeking to come to an agreement with individual faculty over the scheduling of furlough days.
7. Campuses do not have to change the furlough plans already developed for staff, MPP, and non-instructional faculty to accommodate SBCD for instructional faculty; however, they have the option to do so, in which case the campus plan should be augmented or modified as appropriate and resubmitted for approval.
8. Presidents are encouraged to develop communication plans that emphasize the impact of the State imposed budget reductions on the CSU’s ability to serve California and educate its future workforce.

Revised Plans:
Revised plans need to be submitted to Gail Brooks, Vice Chancellor, for approval as soon as possible.