Posted on 12/10/2005 3:50:57 AM PST by Born Conservative
The school board’s unilateral imposition of its own contract is a lockout, attorney says.
“We’re not fooling around any more. I’ve had it. I think all board members have had it.”
Bill Jones School board president
WRIGHT TWP. – The Crestwood teachers union will not show up for work Monday because it considers the board’s attempt to impose a contract unilaterally as a “lockout,” according to attorney John Audi of the Pennsylvania State Education Association, the parent organization of the local teachers union.
School board President Bill Jones said the announcement was a surprise, but that “school is going to be open Monday morning, that’s what I’m going to recommend.” He said it was too early to be sure how classes will be handled if teachers follow through on the threat and don’t show up.
The board’s lead attorney in negotiations, Bruce Campbell, said the union is simply trying to confuse the issue by calling it a lockout, which the law defines as “the cessation of furnishing of work to employees or withholding work from employees, basically to influence collective bargaining. A strike means a concerted action in a failure to report for duty.
“A strike is a strike is a strike,” Campbell said. “We’re not withholding any work from them.”
The union’s move came less that 24 hours after the board announced it could and would legally impose the terms of its latest contract offer – already rejected by the union – to end the “impasse” between the two sides. That decision, in turn, came the same day both the union and the board announced that they rejected a compromise proposal from an arbitration panel.
The board contends that the arbitration process was the last step needed before an impasse became official. The two sides have been negotiating for three years, the longest ongoing dispute in the state, and have also participated in mediation and fact-finding. Campbell said that state and national labor laws, as well as court cases, support their position, but Audi sharply disagreed.
“There is no impasse and can be no impasse under Act 88,” Audi said, referring to the state law governing teacher union negotiations. The lockout is not only legally allowed but necessary, he added.
“Under law, when an employer unilaterally changes terms and conditions of employment while the two parties are working under a contract, that’s a lockout,” Audi said. “So in order for us to protect our legal rights, we cannot show up for work.” He also predicted more legal action against the board, but would not specify the next step.
Unlike a strike, which is limited by law so students can complete 180 days of school by June 30, a lockout has no limit, Audi said. “The 180 days does not apply. We are not on strike. We can stay out the rest of the year if a court doesn’t mandate otherwise.” He added that the teachers will only return if the board reinstates the terms of the previous contract.
Told that, Jones fired back: “That’s not going to happen, and if that’s their position, we’ll have an advertisement in the newspapers for new teachers as quickly as possible.” Jones also countered Audi’s threat of legal action with one of his own, saying that, although the solicitor was out of town, his office was already researching legal options.
“We’re not fooling around any more,” Jones said. “I’ve had it. I think all board members have had it.” He harkened back to a June letter in which local union President Joseph Chmiola Jr. wrote that, without a new contract, teachers “will be unwilling to work the 2005-2006 school year.” The board interpreted that as a mass resignation and threatened to hire new teachers, and Chmiola issued a second letter rescinding the first.
“These are the people preaching they are out there for the children,” Jones said, “and now they are going to shut down the district.”
Noting that he had not yet talked to Jones, Campbell said he believes the district does not have to take court action at this point. “The teachers are on strike, and they are entitled to be on strike,” he said, adding that it is up to the state, not the teachers, to decide if they must return to work in time to finish the school year by the end of June. “That’s a decision for the (state) secretary of education to make.”
It is also not up to the teachers to decide if the board is correct in claiming negotiations reached an impasse, thus allowing the unilateral implementation of a new contract, he added.
“We say we can because there’s an impasse. If we acted legally in implementing our last best offer, this is a strike. If it’s not, they should file an unfair practice complaint to the labor board,” Campbell said. “I don’t think the remedy is to go on strike and call it a lockout.”
Audi said there is more involved than the board’s decision to implement a contract without union approval, which by itself violated the law. He said the board also violated the law by planning the move for months.
“This was a complete surprise to us, and what’s interesting is that, in the newspaper, (board solicitor Jack) Dean said they’ve been planning this for nine months. I don’t understand how they can bargain in good faith and be doing this for nine months.”
But Campbell said there was no time to notify the union, even though the idea of imposing a contract had first been suggested months ago. “This isn’t something that has been targeted as a result for a long time. This evolved out of what happened.” He repeated a long list of what the board claims were good faith efforts to reach an agreement that the union dismissed or rejected.
“It’s hard to warn someone of something you don’t decide to do until you do it. That resolution wasn’t prepared until within 24 hours of the vote they took, and we didn’t know it was going to happen, how people would vote.”
I almost moved into the Crestwood School District last year.
This district has been held hostage by the teachers for decades now. It is time to turn the tables.
Our local teachers have been on strike for 11 days....they got all their financial differences worked out but are still fighting over the length of the class....current length of a class is 60min...they only want to teach for 50min....so they have been on strike for 11 days for 10mins....sheeeeeeeeeesh!
What difference does the length of the class make unless it means the school day is another (with 7 periods) hour and 10 minutes longer?
Extra period... Extra teachers... More Union dues.
The school board should immediately offer vouchers to any student who wishes to enroll in a private school.
Fire the whole bunch -- teachers and administrators -- and home school.
My plant engineer is on the negotiating committee. Actually he's been behind much of this plan and its development. They knew they had this legal option 9 months ago and have been working within the law during negotiations so that at the right moment it could be implemented. The right moment was when the teachers rejected all options, including the non-binding arbitrators ruling, and that happened this week. That was the "impasse" needed.
What will happen is that the raise (yes they will get a 3-4% raise) will be implemented and contributions to healthcare will start, but there also will be mandatory drug testing of teachers and a strong management rights clause. These are a big problem for some, apparently.
Anyway, the teachers will have to seek injunctive relief or go back to work. The 180 day school year limit, which effectively nullified any teacher financial impact until now, will not protect the teachers. They have to go to work or lose some money for once.
Interesting to watch from up close. The old order is changing. Remember, down the road from here, in Freeland, the Molly MacGuires were born, by one of my ancestors actually. It's a strong union area, but people are behind the board on this one. On Wednesday, the electronic sign in front of the High School was destroyed...burned with diesel fuel and an accelerator. Teachers? If so, it's a sad comment on the state of the profession.
BUMP!
I like the idea of putting an ad in the paper for teachers.
I liked it when the teachers told the board that if they didn't have a contract at the beginning of the year, they would be unavailable for work, and the board told them they accepted their mass resignation; that was great! I think this is a case study in greed, and how it eventually doesn't pay to be greedy.
there also will be mandatory drug testing of teachers and a strong management rights clause
Funny you should mention this. Just about an hour ago (before I read your post), I was discussing this with my family, in relation to the recent drug problems in our school district, and the allegations that numerous teachers are doing drugs. I work in a health care facility, and being that we receive federal funds (Medicare reimbursement for our patients), our facilty is required to have a drug testing policy in place, and we are subject to random drug testing. Is this drug-testing requirement also in effect for school employees, since schools receive federal funds?
The old order is changing.
Slowly, but surely.
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