Unionville-Chadds Ford board fields comments about contract

From the Daily Local News:
Unionville-Chadds Ford board fields comments about contract

About 400 people, including many teachers, attend meting at Pocopson Elementary
Sunday, September 26, 2010

By WM. SHAWN WEIGEL, Special to the Local News

POCOPSON — Supporters and opponents of raises for teachers addressed the Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board last week at an informational meeting on contract negotiations.

About 400 people, including many teachers, filled the auditorium at Pocopson Elementary School.

While some spoke on the side of the teachers at the Monday meeting, many were opposed to what they said were inappropriate accommodations in tough economic times.

The teachers have been working without a contract since the end of June when the current contract ran out, leaving them to be compensated under the terms of the last valid contract.

The decision to go public with the negotiations came from the teacher's association, according to school board member Frank Murphy, who reported the union used the option after giving the board a required 48 hours notice on Sept. 7.

Much of the disagreement appears to be over salary and health care benefits, although issues concerning tuition reimbursement, the number of working days and length of the work day are also under discussion.

Pennsbury resident Beverly Brooks said this is the way every teachers contract negotiation goes, with both sides calling the other unfair. She said she was happy to pay her share to see the schools remain high in state and county rankings.

"That's how public education works, the retired and the working pay for the children's education," Brooks said. "If we don't support good teachers and good education, what do we have?"

Pocopson resident Tom Pancoast said he had a problem with the way the teachers present at the meeting resembled "an army" and were behaving as such.

Each of the teachers wore a blue Unionville-Chadds Ford Education Association Polo shirt emblazoned with the yellow Unionville-Chadds Ford Education Association logo.

"The only way we can work this out is together, and you come marching in here like an army," he said. "You're clearly drawing battle lines."

Pocopson resident Kristen Hoover, who identified herself as a former teacher, said she could not agree with the teachers' side, given the state of the economy.

"I think people need to be aware of the fact that there is a lot of pain in these nice little houses around here," she said.

School board member Jeff Leiser said the rumors that the board has not acted in good faith are false and that the teachers union has held fast to what he called "economically unsuitable" terms.

"Good faith does not mean giving into the association's demands (and does not mean) splitting the difference," Leiser said. "I believe good faith means listening respectfully to each other, trying to understand each side's needs and developing a mutually beneficial proposal."

Leiser also read a list of probable cuts and reductions that could occur if the district were to accept the union's current list of demands.

"Should we eliminate the jobs of good people on our faculty and staff? Should we increase our class sizes significantly above our guidelines? Should we cut extracurricular programs from our schools? Should we try to raise taxes above legal limits imposed by Act 1?" Leiser asked. "These are some of the consequences that could result if we do not deal with this matter in a fiscally prudent way now."

School board President Timotha Trigg called for "shared sacrifice" on both sides for the benefit of the children in the district.

"We do value you," she said. "And if we cannot reach an agreement, it is the children who will suffer."

The teacher's side remained quiet for the most part, with the few who did speak addressing the district's recent discussion on outsourcing transportation duties.

Instead, the teachers relied on a written statement handed out at the beginning of the meeting, which addressed some of the union's concerns.

Those issues included a 4 percent increase to the "total teacher payroll" over four years and divided among 331 teachers.

The statement also addressed concerns that the board has not responded to the union's most recent proposal in more than a month.

It also said the union proposed a change to the health care insurance plan that would have had the district paying less while increasing the salary contribution, and that the district rejected that proposal.

For more information on the negotiations, visit the district's site at www.ucfsd.org and the Unionville-Chadds Ford Education Association's site at www.ucfea.org.