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What Are the Disputed Points in PPS-PFT Impasse?

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As announced yesterday (here, here, here and here) the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers voted to authorize a strike.  The last time there was a strike in the Pittsburgh Public Schools was the mid-1970s, long before the passage of Act 88 which governs collective bargaining for school employees and probably when the District still had appointed school directors.  There is a negotiating session set for this coming Friday between the parties.

The fact finding process that is required under Act 88 took place in the fall and it discussed the issues in dispute: salary schedules, including for post-2010 hires who were once under a pay for performance model (based on PA Dept of Education data the average classroom teacher salary in Allegheny County’s districts was $70,631, and PPS’ average was twelfth highest $75,261), health care, and transfers of employees.

On this last point there is existing contract language on teacher scheduling that the District wants to amend to give principals “… final authority to assign teacher schedules within the school, considering both teacher and student data.”  It is here that the question of managerial policy arose and the fact finder sided with the District based on its citation of collective bargaining agreements and Act 88 language.

Apparently class size is also an issue as it was noted in the PFT press release but it did not come under consideration in the fact finding report.

Ultimately the District accepted the report and the PFT rejected it.

To read more on the Institute’s research on teacher strikes in Pennsylvania, click here.

 

 

 

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Allegheny Institute
Allegheny Institute

The Allegheny Institute is a non-profit research and education organization. Our mission is to defend the interests of taxpayers, citizens and businesses against an increasingly burdensome and intrusive government.

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