FeedsWestland teachers, district work toward contract
The threat of a teacher strike continues to cause uncertainty for families in the Wayne-Westland school district as a new labor contract remains elusive.
Classes are scheduled to begin Tuesday, but as of Friday morning the unresolved negotiations between the teachers’ union and the school district could result in the delay of the start of classes.
“The two sides are negotiating right now,” said John Retzer, vice-president of the Wayne-Westland Education Association (WWEA) on Friday afternoon. He said negotiators for the district had not agreed to schedule negotiations after that day. “The Education Association would very much like to continue the entire weekend.”
However, a negotiations update posted on the Wayne-Westland school district web site disputed the depiction of the district.
“Despite the Aug. 28 press release from the teachers’ union to the contrary, the district’s bargaining team is available to bargain throughout the Labor Day weekend and beyond if necessary,” read the district statement. “The district is committed to negotiating until a contract settlement is reached which is fair to teachers and is consistent with the district’s overriding objective of giving this community’s children the full measure of educational opportunities they deserve.”
In a written statement dated Aug. 28 on the Michigan Education Association web site, the WWEA indicated that they had “asked the Michigan Employment Relations Commission to assist in the process, in the hopes that the school board can be convinced to schedule further bargaining sessions and finally bargain in good faith.”
The state mediator is charged with the task of helping the two sides iron out the sticking points in the negotiations, which have been divided over matters including class size, health care, and salary. The union has held fast to their demands, arguing that the WWEA has made significant concessions in recent years including “salary and benefit cuts (two years ago) in response to the superintendent’s claims that everyone, even administrators, would take cuts,” which the union claims didn’t happen.
“We want to be in our classrooms on the first day of school, but we stand united for what’s right,” said Nancy Strachan, president of WWEA President in a written statement. “We can’t allow the school district to bully the students, the community, and the teachers with their half-truths. But we certainly can’t have a settlement if they aren’t at the bargaining table.”
The school district, however, has charged that the long-term financial impact the teachers’ demands would significantly impact the educational tools and services available to students.
“The district believes teachers should be compensated fairly and reasonably and will continue to bargain in good faith with the union’s leadership,” reads the statement from the district. “However, the district will not jeopardize the educational opportunities of the district’s students in order to meet union demands that are inconsistent with the best interests of our community and its children.”
A letter to employees of the school district, written by the Executive Director of Human Resources Bernard La Porte and signed by the six members of the board of education, spelled out the potential consequences of participating in a strike, noting that Michigan law prohibits strikes by public employees, including teachers.
“The Board will consider that district employees, including WWEA members, who do not report for work or who report for work but do not perform all of their duties, are engaging in illegal conduct,” reads the letter posted on the district web site. “The Board of Education will also discipline employees who, in concert with the WWEA’s leadership, do not report for work or do not perform all of their duties, up to and including discharge.”
As of Friday, Wayne-Westland School Superintendent Gregory Baracy said that the district expects the school year will begin as scheduled and that children should plan to head back to school on Tuesday.
