Valley Grove Teachers Grant Negotiations Team Authority to Strike

Aly Delp

Aly Delp

Published May 25, 2018 4:28 am
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FRANKLIN, Pa. (EYT) — Despite some progress in recent talks, Valley Grove School Board shut down the process with a “final offer.”

On May 24, 2018, following the failed negotiations session between teams representing the Valley Grove Education Association (VGEA) and the Valley Grove School Board on May 23, the VGEA held a general membership meeting to review the status of negotiations with its members. The product of that meeting was a unanimous vote to grant the Association’s negotiations team the right to call a strike when and if they deem necessary.

“Our members have been patient,” said VGEA President Amanda Fox Culver. “That patience just ran out. I think the final straw came when they were informed that the Board had issued what they call their ‘final offer’ and refused to continue negotiating. We are always willing to negotiate fairly, but we can’t make progress when the Board shuts down and leaves.”

Nearly 700 days without a contract, the teachers feel that the Board has little intention of working collaboratively to find a solution to the contract question.

“Our proposals are reasonable; the Board has amassed a fund balance that could allow them to run for nearly a year with no revenue; we’ve made concessions, and still the Board delivered an ultimatum,” Culver said. “The fundamental disconnect here is that the Board doesn’t seem to realize that their final offer means nothing. No offer will settle the matter until a majority of our members and a majority of the Board’s members agree to accept it. And they just received our members’ answer to whether they would accept the Board’s ‘final offer:’ a strike authorization.”

The Association cites a variety of factors that put the Board in a solid position to offer a reasonable settlement:

– The District’s $9 million fund balance/reserve is equal to 72 percent of its budget. For context, the Pennsylvania School Boards Association recommends carrying a fund balance of 5 to 10 percent.

– The District saved $224,000 in the 2016-17 school year by joining the Northwestern Region Employee Benefit Trust (NOREBT) and thanks to that move, annual health insurance costs only increased a modest 2.14 percent, or roughly $33,358, in 2017-18.

– The teachers have offered to increase contributions to healthcare.

– The teachers are asking for 2.6 percent in average wage increases over the life of the contract.

“We respect prudence, but the Board has a responsibility to join us in finding a solution,” said Culver. “The Board’s responsibility is to conduct the business of running the schools, not running a bank.”

The Valley Grove Education Association represents the 69 teachers and education specialists employed by the Valley Grove School District.

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