Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Shoe on Other Foot in University Contract Dispute
Pennsylvania leads the nation in strikes by public school teachers and has for many years. The deck is stacked in their favor: they face no financial harm, no threat from replacement workers, and can count on parents to put pressure on the school board to resolve any impasse, which usually comes down on the side of the teachers.
But now there may be a little bit of heat on the faculty of the state’s higher education system, whose contract expires Saturday. Apparently a letter from the system’s administration notes that pay and benefits could be affected if there is a system-wide strike.
The president of the union took offense, noting that the letter is “meant to scare and intimidate people” and has filed an unfair labor practice complaint.
Maybe the state’s “junior circuit”—the teachers in the elementary and secondary schools—should reassure the union president that fear and intimidation is part of the negotiation process in Pennsylvania. They have almost elevated the prediction of dire consequences from budget cuts or efforts to hold the line on taxes to a high science.
But now there may be a little bit of heat on the faculty of the state’s higher education system, whose contract expires Saturday. Apparently a letter from the system’s administration notes that pay and benefits could be affected if there is a system-wide strike.
The president of the union took offense, noting that the letter is “meant to scare and intimidate people” and has filed an unfair labor practice complaint.
Maybe the state’s “junior circuit”—the teachers in the elementary and secondary schools—should reassure the union president that fear and intimidation is part of the negotiation process in Pennsylvania. They have almost elevated the prediction of dire consequences from budget cuts or efforts to hold the line on taxes to a high science.
