Labor issues are again bubbling up for the Morgan Hill Unified
School District as the second of three employee groups has
contacted the California Public Employment Relations Board
(PERB).
Morgan Hill – Labor issues are again bubbling up for the Morgan Hill Unified School District as the second of three employee groups has contacted the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB).
The Morgan Hill Federation of Teachers (MHFT) has filed a complaint against the district with PERB, naming seven grievances and citing specific instances of the district’s failures, the complaint alleges, to comply with the negotiated contract between the district and the union.
MHFT represents approximately 480 teachers in the district. Other employee groups are the Service Employees International Union, which represents classified employees, and the Morgan Hill Educational Leaders Association, which represents district administrators.
Assistant Superintendent Jay Totter would not comment on each of the complaints.
“I have received a copy of the PERB document, and at the present time we are reviewing the document and will prepare a response for PERB,” Totter said Thursday. “This is the very preliminary level; once we have responded in writing, PERB will make a determination to move forward or not.”
According to documents filed with PERB, the union claims the district failed to provide requested information, failed to execute a written collective bargaining agreement, failed to honor the union’s consultation rights, failed to execute and implement agreements about the impacts of the High Step Program and failed to negotiate wages and hours and directly negotiated with unit members
Another issue the union lists as problematic involves a program the district has referred to as “High Step.”
The High Step Program is a district plan to offer college courses at the district high schools that would be taught by Gavilan Community College. Foster said representatives from the district and the union met several times to discuss the plan in 2005 and 2006, reaching a number of agreements which are laid out in the minutes of a meeting held March 20.
One of the agreements, Foster said, was that course offerings for the program would be determined during a meeting with union, district and Gavilan representatives in September, but the meeting did not take place.
The complaint by the union alleges “the district has simply ignored all union requests regarding High Step and has failed to acknowledge or live up to the agreements it reached with the union.”
One complaint by the union, Foster said, is that a written document containing the negotiated labor agreement for three years ratified by the school board and federation members in September has not been created.
“On numerous occasions since August 2006, Federation President Donna Foster orally and in writing requested of the district that the parties meet to finalize contract language so that a written contract could be printed,” the union alleges. “On Nov. 21, 2006, Ms. Foster gave Superintendent Nishino a letter demanding that the written agreement be completed no later than Dec. 15, 2006; she received no response from the superintendent,” says the formal written complaint mailed to PERB.
Foster described the non-execution of the contract as the “most glaring” of the complaint issues, adding that union members feel the district is been disrespectful of their professionalism.
“Over and over again district administrators have failed to respond to federation requests for information that the union needs to represent its members in negotiating and enforcing collective bargaining agreements and to represent members in disciplinary proceedings,” the union alleges in the complaint. “This stonewalling by the district has made it very difficult for the union to execute its duties as the exclusive bargaining agent.”
MHFT President Donna Foster said Thursday that union members are “frustrated” by what they see as an effort by district administrators to be secretive.
“We’ve made a concerted effort to communicate with the district, tried to avail ourselves of every process at our disposal, but what we’ve seen is that they repeatedly violate or ignore our contact,” she said. “It’s a relationship in which they want to keep all information secretive, and certainly it’s important to understand that in 28 years, we’ve never filed an unfair labor practice complaint, to my knowledge or the knowledge of the past presidents that I’ve spoken with. We are extremely frustrated to find ourselves at this kind of loggerhead.”
Totter and Foster were in mediation on Thursday on a different grievance issue, Foster said, but because they are mediating, she could not state what this grievance involves.
If PERB accepts the union’s complaints after receiving the district’s response, district representatives and union representatives will meet with PERB for mediation.
Early Thursday, Totter said he wants to settle the issues.
“As always, we are willing to work cooperatively with the bargaining
unit,” he said. “With PERB assisting both sides, I believe we can be successful in coming to a resolution of these issues.”
Foster called on the school board and the community to question the district administration’s actions.
“We are calling on the board to question what they are doing supporting a superintendent who is not willing to work with employees,” she said. “We are asking the public to question why the board is allowing this, and not only with the teachers but also with the classified employees. Is this their wish, their direction? Is this the attitude of the board that it is okay that we have a serious impasse on one hand and on the other, an unfair labor practice? We feel they’ve got a big problem.”
Marilyn Dubil covers education and law enforcement for The Times. Reach her at (408) 779-4106 ext. 202 or at
md****@*************es.com.
