Cairo Association of Teachers - Newsletter

CAT Tracks for September 9, 2008 NEGOTIATIONS UPDATE

Received a telephone call yesterday afternoon canceling the negotiations session scheduled for last night.

This "action" follows the BOE's call to cancel last week's scheduled negotiations session.

THAT "action" followed the BOE's failure to have a quorum at the previous week's session...a session that had been rescheduled from earlier in the week. (The CAT bargaining team did use the "discussion" session to try to "sell" its proposed salary schedule...a salary schedule that addressed the BOE's expressed concern for enhancing the starting salary...the "recruiting salary", while "costing out" favorably with what had been projected by the District's Financial Administrators for salary for FY 09.)

So...the last negotiations session (the 19th such session) was held on August 19th. THAT was the session in which the CAT bargaining team presented a monetary proposal.

Oh...and did I mention there was some "bad news"???

In canceling last night negotiations session, the BOE bargaining team spokesperson indicated that a decision had been made to bring an attorney to the table to represent the District...

CHA-CHING!!!

And I had just mentioned "feeding the lawyers" in Friday's edition...in reference to the unfair labor practice "announced" by the District when the Superintendent indicated the District's intent NOT to comply with the Contract (and court decisions) in advancing employees on the salary schedule for the September 15th paycheck. Guess that was just the appetizer...now it's time for the entrée!!!

Okay, that's as far as I'm going to take my "rant"...for now.

I literally "slept on it"...mulling over what to say. The Association is already on record (several times) as opposing the use of lawyers to negotiate...putting people at the negotiations table who are "on the meter". (When you hire a carpenter, why do you hire them "by the job" instead of hiring them "by the hour"???) We have "been there, done that"...and it was UGLY!!!

BUT...

As indicated in the preface...something had to change! Three failed meetings in three weeks...

Also...the District is NOT employing Robbins et al (a.k.a. Barney & Company) to be its negotiator this year. Therefore, the Association shall withhold judgment... (By the way, do NOT feel sorry for Robbins et al...they are still draining the District dry in the James Gibson case!)

In light of the District's decision to bring an attorney to the table and the passage of three weeks with no response to CAT's initial monetary proposal, the Association feels it is time to bring in a federal mediator...a person trained in focusing the parties and speeding up the process.

This should NOT be cause for alarm...we have had successful mediations in the past. The two sides are NOT locked in "mortal combat"...there actually is NO serious disagreements at this time. We are just not progressing as we should.

Frustrated?

Walk in the shoes of the bargaining team members!!!

Some members have wondered out loud about having a membership meeting. The CAT bargaining team has no objection to a meeting, it's just that there is really nothing to report. We have some TAs (tentative agreements), but the vast majority of those are of the "back to book" variety...where the Association was able to beat back BOE attempts at "give backs". (In other words, the BOE came to the table wanting to take back a lot of the existing contract language...that the existing language "shackled its administrators". By giving specific examples, the Association bargaining team explained why the language was developed in the first place...to correct past abuses by past administrators...to prevent their recurrence! In the end, the BOE bargaining team agreed to leave the current language alone...to go "back to book". THAT is what takes 19 sessions!!! You just can NOT understand unless you have been there.)

So...we ALL will have to continue to be patient. The CAT bargaining team STILL has hope that a new agreement will be reached. Hopefully, we will look back on these latest events as the turning point...a momentary delay that will actually bring swifter settlement.

As they say, time will tell...