Dear CFI Members,

We are asking members to support our CWA brothers and sisters who work in the telecom industries, and for whom this bill is very important to stem the avalanche of jobs off-shoring of call centers. Our profession is facing the very same thing, but it will be taking the form of Video Remote Interpreting call centers being off-shored to other countries throughout Latin America and Asia. This law’s protection will help protect us down the line. I urge you to call your representatives and get this through to the Governor’s desk.
 
In solidarity,
 
Michael Ferreira, President
California Federation of Interpreters
Local 39000 TNG-CWA

Dear Region 3 Members,

Your bargaining committee is happy to announce that we have started discussing and working on strategies. 

We have decided to take an aggressive offensive approach as our main strategy. In prior years we have tried different approaches and strategies to meet our goals; however, we have not been able to make the necessary impact to move the regional courts to offer employees a fair wage. Although picketing, handing out fliers, and speaking to justice partners is an effective bargaining strategy to which we will also implement, we also need to step upour game.

We need to go directly to those who have authority over the courts and can influence the budget, as well as reaching out to the organizations that  advocate for the people to whom we provide interpreting services. We can no longer assume that the fight is only ours. Recruiting and retention of interpreters is crucial in providing fair and equal access to our justice system! Without us, there would be no language access. Likewise, no language access means no fair and equal access to justice for the millions of Californians who are limited English proficient. 

For years, the courts have told us there is no money for interpreter raises. By CFI getting the ball rolling in courts offering contractors the federal rate, we demonstrated that there is money. Now it’s our turn to be paid a fair wage. We need to reach out to contractors and ask for their support. There is enough money for all to be paid a fair wage commensurate with our skill set!

The success of our negotiations will depend on our mobilizing efforts. We need volunteers in each county to do the outreach aimed at:

• Justice Partners- District Attorneys, Public Defenders, Probation, Self-Help, etc. 

• Labor Council- participate in the meetings, make Council aware of what is going on in our sector, and ask for their guidance and support.

• Organizations- advocates for immigrants, civil rights groups, legal aide, Community Action Partners, Victim Services, Hispanic Foundation, Indigenous organizations, etc. 

• Unions- SEIU, ACSME, UFW, CWA, and others.

• State Representatives-State Assembly and Senate representatives of each county. 

• Independent Contractors (particularly concerning VRI issues).

Please join our efforts and volunteer. Send us an email indicating how you would like to volunteer at [email protected]. 

In Solidarity

Your Region 3 Bargaining Team

Region 2 Bargaining Committee Results:

The top five candidates are part of the bargaining committee.

Name                                             Votes