Labor strife in Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor paraprofessionals file unfair labor charges against school district
ANN ARBOR, Mich., May 27, 2008 – The union representing more than 300 classroom paraprofessionals in Ann Arbor Public Schools has filed unfair labor practice charges against the district.
One of the charges stems from a canceled mediation session last week, a meeting that members of the Ann Arbor Education Association/Paraprofessionals hoped would result in a contract after two years of difficult bargaining. The paraprofessionals’ contract expired June 30, 2006.
“We wanted to reach an agreement,” said Guy Sands, the MEA UniServ director who works with the Ann Arbor group. “Instead, we didn’t even get a courtesy call when the district decided to cancel the mediation session.”
The two sides have been working with a mediator since November 2007; the last session was April 22. At that time, another mediation session was scheduled for May 20 and a tentative session was set for May 21.
Union negotiators went to the May 20 meeting only to be informed that it had been canceled by the district. It was the second time the school district canceled a mediation session.
Charges filed Friday with the Michigan Employment Relations Commission, the state agency that resolves labor disputes involving public and private sector employees, cite bad faith bargaining by the district. The district continues to make unrealistic salary proposals with a three-year wage freeze and rollbacks in health insurance. The district also has refused to consider the association’s proposals, another violation of the state’s Public Employment Relations Act.
An unfair labor practice is an action that violates the rights of a party governed by the state’s Public Employment Relations Act. The act requires employers and unions representing public employees to bargain in good faith.
Contact: Guy Sands, MEA UniServ director, 734-973-9600