Speculation is mounting on how the Buffalo Teachers contract saga will conclude. In this week's Press Pass conversation WBFO's Eileen Buckley and Buffalo Education Reporter Tiffany Lankes discuss the issues that need to be hammered out between the City School district and Buffalo Teachers Federation.
“The district and the union have kind of reached this tipping point,” Lankes explained.
Several issues remain a sticking point in contract talks.
Teachers have been without a contract for 12-years and have not received pay raises.
“The District feels it can’t afford that. This has become a real point of contention,” Lankes noted.
The district is also proposing changes to teacher work rules and with the skyrocketing cost of healthcare, the district wants teachers to offer a contribution.
Buffalo Teachers Federation President Phil Rumore and Schools Superintendent Dr. Kriner Cash have held meetings to try and come to an agreement.
Rumore has summoned all city school teachers to attend a meeting on October 17th in hopes of presenting a proposed contract for ratification.
“These are some real serious issues on the table, and on top of that, the district is asking for some fairly significant work rule changes,” said Lankes. “They have hit a point where I think there’s a feeling a strike might be imminent.”
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Selected Audio Transcript
Eileen Buckley: “Now, you had Dr. Cash, Superintendent Cash down at the Buffalo News for an editorial meeting. He said if there is a potential of a strike, that they’re ready. What else did you get out of the meeting with him?”
Tiffany Lankes: “You know, I think where we’re at is the district and the union have really kind of reached this tipping point. As you noted, this has gone on for twelve years—this kind of on and off negotiations over time. They’ve exhausted all of their options for outside mediation through the public employee relations board. This is an unprecedented situation. We’ve done stories on this for the past couple years. No one really knows, what do you do in a situation like this, where you seem to have reached this impasse that so far no one’s been able to kind of cut through and you know they have hit a point where I think there’s a feeling that a strike might be imminent?
Dr. Cash’s message I think, to us at the editorial board-- the union is asking for a lot of this centers around back pay. You’ve teachers who have gone twelve years without a raise in addition to their step increase. Some teachers who have been on the same step, or who have reached that top step, haven’t had any raise at all. You’re talking about a lot of money to make up for that lost time and the district feels that it can’t afford that, looking in the long run. This has become a real point of contention.”
TL: “The health insurance is another big one. The district wants teachers to start paying a percentage increase, the union says it’s willing to pay a dollar amount so it’s fixed. We all know health care costs have gone up astronomically in the course of the past decade. So these are some real serious issues on the table and on top of that the district is asking for some fairly significant work-rule changes, not just for teachers but I think anyone in any union…seniority clauses, that’s a basic clause in most union contracts and the district wants to basically do away with that and allow principals, through the transfer process, to select the staff members they want.”
EB: “And one of the other things is this attendance initiative that’s out there. How does it become kind of a difficult process for the negotiations?”
TL: “The district, this is kind of I think the second incarnation we’ve seen of where the district has made an effort to try and get teachers a little bit of extra money but get something in return for it. You might remember in a previous proposal they had offered to put some extra money on the table for teachers who worked an extra period. So the district doesn’t seem opposed to putting some extra money out there but they’re trying to do it in kind of an incentive way. The teacher absenteeism, you’re hearing more that it is a problem in this district—so basically it’s a sliding scale where teachers who only miss five or less days would get ‘x’ amount of dollars, those who miss in the next bracket might get this much. The whole idea, you know, is for teachers to show up and teach their classes so you’re not relying on substitutes. You know, the flip side, Phil Rumore was very quick to come back and point out that, well, if you’re a female and you go on maternity leave, you’re going to be missing a lot more school—you wouldn’t qualify for that bonus. The district’s team did point out, kind of to refute that, that you know, this was put on the table and not really discussed further. So but, again, anyone that’s been following this for years, it’s kind of been this rotation of things have been thrown out there, things that have been kicked off the table, kind of around and around and this is where we’ve gotten.”
EB: “Now, Phil has called together all the teachers to be at this October 17 meeting. Any indication from Phil Rumore where he’s at?”
TL: “He has not spoken specifically about anything. He has expressed when, he called this meeting, his expectation—and I think the expectation of a lot of teachers is that they will have a contract to vote on. If that is not the case, you know, he said we’re going to have to think about our other options and really the only other option they have would be to go on strike.
…If the teachers do go on strike, that really is the most significant pressure you can put on a body of elected individuals because you’re going to have teachers who are going to take a financial hit. They’re penalized for two days basically, if you go on strike. Parents are going to have to figure out what to do with their kids. And given the current demographic in the city, you’re going to have parents who are maybe working, who maybe can’t afford other childcare options, that’s going to be an inconvenience for. You also have a large and I think vocal middle class community now in the city, which I think is different than the last time. We have some very vocal parents that are also not going to be real happy if they have to figure out what to do with their kid.”
