At the close of our last negotiations session on August 27, 2001, the two teams agreed to take a three-week "break" in order to give both sides an opportunity to review rationales presented during previous sessions and draft comprehensive counterproposals for Articles I and II which would address those concerns. It was agreed at that time that said counterproposals would be exchanged on September 13^th and that a negotiations session would be held on September 17^th. The Association later agreed to a postponement of that process at the request of the Board of Education. Following a hiatus of approximately five weeks, you contacted the Association with an offer of two dates for the resumption of negotiations. The Association notified you in writing of the acceptance of this offer and suggested an "exchange date" of October 25^th. The Association did NOT receive a response to that letter, the exchange did NOT take place, AND now we are informed that the Board’s position is unchanged! THIS IS NOT "GOOD FAITH NEGOTIATIONS".

The Association spent considerable time and effort drafting new language that would address concerns raised by the Board team. By your own admission, the Board has done nothing—for two months! This is a violation of the spirit of and probably the letter of the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act and is an issue that the Association will raise with legal counsel.

To show OUR continued good faith, the Association hereby agrees to meet with the Board team on Monday, October 29, 2001 at 6 p.m. despite the fact the Board has NOT complied with promises made.

Sincerely,

Ron Newell, President
Cairo Association of Teachers