January 1999 OCEA Quest
Negotiations Update
by Jeffrey Greb
As most of you are aware, we are about to enter contract negotiations with the district for the 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 school years. The last time we went through this process, a number of people expressed the concern that they were not kept informed about the progress of negotiations. Keeping in mind that bargaining rules preclude the public discussion of some aspects of process, the negotiations team plans to provide the membership with updates in each issue of the Quest until we have a contract ratified. This means that updates may consist of little more than confirmation that no new progress has been made (although a stalemate really benefits no one), but the updates shall appear nonetheless.
Right now the team is prioritizing the results collected from the surveys distributed. One hundred seventy-seven surveys (approximately 45%) were returned to us with salary being by far the number one issue. We are preparing to meet informally with the district's team in early February to identify areas of common ground and hope to reduce some of the animosity that has driven parts of this process in the past.
Since the surveys contained opportunity for teachers to comment, many people chose to do so on a variety of topics. In addition to giving us many interesting suggestions to ponder, we noted a number of misunderstandings and misconceptions in the comments. We'll use these updates as a way to respond to some of these issues we saw repeated on the surveys.
One such issue I'd like to address now is the frustration a number of people seem to be experiencing. They feel that their suggestions in previous years were ignored or not acted upon. While such frustration is understandable, please recognize the nature of the negotiation process. First, the team must set its priorities to reflect those of the whole membership. There are only so many items that can be negotiated for any individual contract. Some ideas may be wonderful in and of themselves, but not fall into areas our members have identified to be their primary concern. Second, negotiation is a process of give and take. Some proposals are brought to the bargaining table and must be given up by us in order to get concessions on other things from the district. We cannot simply provide them with a list of demands that they must accept; consequently, some negotiated items don't make it to the final contract. Our goal is to get a contract that meets the most needs of the majority of our members. everyone cannot get everything in the short term, however, by benefiting the collective, we all benefit in the long run.
Another emotionally charged area is insurance. When we put the bid out to several companies a few years back, the deal we now have was the best options for the price including adding vision and dental. Although our vision and dental plans aren't optimal, until recently we've had neither. Remember: the insurance company, not OCEA or the district , sets the premiums. Of course we'd like to lower those expenses without lowering service (so would the district), but healthcare rates are spiraling out of control. Other methods of structuring our package are currently being explored outside of the negotiations process. Costs are high for everybody and hopefully a measure of sanity will eventually prevail. (By the way, all Carson dentists are on the dental plan, you can go to any dentist you chose).
Stay tuned and next issue we'll explore some equally fascinating topics!
Take the Read Across America Pledge to Participate
Dear Friend of Reading,
We are calling for every child in every school in every community to read with a caring adult on March 2, 1999, Dr. Seuss's 95th Birthday...
Last year, Read Across America seized the imagination of NEA and the nation. A million teachers, parents and community leaders put on their Cat in the Hat hats and shared favorite stories with ten million children sending a crystal clear message that reading is important. In fact, it was this country's largest celebration of reading ever.
Please join us this year in building an even bigger and better celebration. Take a look at how people celebrated last year. See what's already being planned. Borrow an idea or two. And start organizing. With best wishes for many more fun filled reading adventures.
Sincerely,
Bob Chase
President
National Education Association
Web Sites
www.nea.org/readacross - for more information concerning Read Across America.
www.ala.org - American Library Association offers tips on how librarians and parents can encourage teenagers to read.
