Unions enter fact-finding in contract impasses

From the Intelligencer

Unions enter fact-finding in contract impasses
By: LOU SESSINGER
The Intelligencer

The school board is working on contracts with teacher aides, secretaries and teachers.

Labor strife involving three employee unions continues to be the center of attention in the Souderton Area School District, and there continues to be little information about the progress of resolving that strife.

That was the essence of school district solicitor Jeffrey Sultanik's update to the school board at its meeting Thursday night.

Sultanik reported that the unions representing the district's teacher aides (Souderton Area Educational Support Personnel Association) and secretaries (Souderton Area Secretaries Association) have entered what is known as "fact-finding" in their contract impasse with the district.

The Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board has appointed a fact finder to review the contract offers of the two unions and the district and recommend a settlement.

Health benefits and salaries have been reported to be the issues dividing the parties, but details of the contract offers haven't been made public because of the bargaining process.

Sultanik said that the school board can expect to receive the fact finder's recommended settlement on Monday.

The recommendation will not be made public, and the unions and school board will have between five and 10 days to vote whether to accept or reject it.

"If both sides accept it, we'll have a settlement," Sultanik said.

If either side rejects it, the recommendation will be made public, and the unions and school board will have a period of time during which they'll take a second vote.

The process involving the aides' and secretaries' unions is "a somewhat different procedure" than that governing the contract impasse with the teachers union (Souderton Area Education Association), the solicitor said.

Following a strike that delayed the start of the school year in September, the union and board are in a process of non-binding arbitration. After a series of confidential hearings on both sides' final best offer, the three-member arbitration panel will recommend a settlement.

Both sides will vote to accept or reject it. If either side rejects it, the union could stage a second strike of limited duration.

School Director Eric R. MacDougall asked when the board could expect to receive the arbitrators' report.

"I don't know," Sultanik replied, "but I suspect it will be after this current process (involving the aides and secretaries) is completed.

"Four to six weeks is my best guess."

The school board has offered the teachers a three-year contract with pay raises of 2.5 percent a year. The union is seeking raises of 8 percent a year to bring their salaries in line with those of school districts in the region.

Lou Sessinger can be contacted at 215-345-3148 or lsessinger@phillyBurbs.com.

March 27, 2009 02:41 AM