Teachers
picket for pact
Great Meadows. School district,
union at impasse over new contract.
Friday, January 20, 206 • By KAT MAIN • The
Express-Times
Great Meadows Regional teachers recently
started picketing at the district's three schools in hopes
of forcing the school board to settle with the union on a
new contract.
The teachers' three-year contracts
expired in June. Since then, the district's 86 teachers have
been working without a contract, said John Skodocek,
co-president of the teacher's union, the Great Meadows
Regional Education Association.
"We're not getting results. We want to
make the public more aware we're working without a contract.
Through (picketing) we hope parents will put pressure on the
board to be actively in negotiation with us prior to
mediation," Skodocek said.
"The association feels the board's
committee is ineffective in the negotiating process and the
board is just waiting for mediation to occur."
Skodocek said he hopes the board will
settle before mediation occurs so taxpayers can be spared
the cost of a state-appointed mediator.
"Taxpayers need to be aware of the
board's responsibility for the cost of mediation. Especially
if it becomes a long drawn out process, as negotiations have
been so far," he said.
To further show their dissatisfaction,
teachers on Monday boycotted a teachers' in-service day.
Superintendent Jason Bing said the day was planned for
professional development workshops.
"(Contract negotiations) throws some
obstacles in our way. I think we had a pretty good plan for
this year, but we're not being able to implement it with
what's going on with the contract," Bing said.
Bing said the administration is in a
precarious position during the ongoing talks.
"You need to support your teachers and
staff but you're also a community liaison stuck in the
middle. You focus on the day-to-day operations. That's all
you can do," Bing said.
Skodocek said health benefits and
salaries are major sticking points in
negotiations.
The average teacher's salary for the
2004-05 school year was $53,346. The county average was
$53,693 for that same year.
Mike Yaple, spokesman with New Jersey
School Boards, said at the start of the 2005-06 school year,
199 school districts statewide were in contract negotiations
with teachers. On Thursday, Yaple said there are still three
to four dozen districts statewide still in some form of
negotiation.
"It's been a difficult year," Yaple
said.
Along with Great Meadows, the districts
in Hunterdon and Warren counties yet to settle as of
December include Hackettstown, Knowlton Township, Oxford
Township, and Lambertville, High Bridge and Alexandria
Township school districts.
Reporter Kat Main can be reached at 908-475-8044 or by
e-mail at kmain@express-times.com.
© 2006 The Express-Times. Used with
permission.
|