Advocate Online

NEA Affiliates in Action

Organizing
In May, a ruling by the Missouri Supreme Court, in a case brought by Missouri NEA, confirmed that the state’s constitution extended collective bargaining rights to law enforcement officers, public school teachers, and university employees.

The ruling in Independence NEA v. Independence School District provides “That employees shall have the right to organize and bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing.”

The right to collective bargaining requires that a majority of employees in a workplace elect or decide who will be the exclusive representative of their rights. The court’s decision, MNEA leaders say, will encourage  teachers, including those in higher education, to choose union representation and bargaining.

“This is great news for all public employees, but it is especially good news for Missouri’s educators and students. Ultimately, the result is better working and learning conditions in Missouri schools,” said Missouri NEA President Greg Jung (now retired).

Campus Activities
Two unfair labor practice charges filed by the Blue Mountain (OR) Faculty Association against the college were resolved informally at the local level this summer by Association and college representatives without a formal hearing.
 
The college, after losing on nine unfair labor practice complaints last year, is attempting to change to a more positive tone and tenor in their local labor relations. As part of the settlement, the college agreed to conduct a nationwide search and hire a full-time science instructor and to a financial settlement with a non-renewed faculty member.

The California State University-East Bay Diversity Council has named its annual equity and diversity award after Terry Jones, former California Faculty Association president, CSU-East Bay social work professor, and former chair of the NEA Human and Civil Rights Committee. The Terry Jones Equity and Diversity award will be given annually.

Contracts
Negotiations between higher education affiliates of the Massachusetts Teachers Association/NEA and the Trustees at the University of Massachusetts for faculty, librarians, and staff at the Amherst, Boston and Lowell campuses and with the Board of Higher Education for the faculty and librarians at the nine state colleges produced a one-year agreement providing a 3.5  percent salary increase, with additional money for other campus purposes and faculty development.
 
The pact, which runs from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008, also provides for an additional contribution for all units to the dental insurance plan. All of the nine tentative agreements were scheduled to be ratified by the end of September.

During the final weeks prior to the tentative agreements, the negotiations included direct conversations with Gov. Deval Patrick’s administration.

Three Maine Education Association/NEA higher education units in the university system reached tentative agreements on new contracts in record time this summer, indicating a new level of respect between the unions and the university, according to negotiators.

The university system trustees ratified the settlements at their meeting in September  for the three units—the Associated Faculties of the University of Maine, the Associated COLT (Clerical, Office, Lab, Technical) Staff of the Universities of Maine, and the Universities of Maine Professional Staff Association, which together represent nearly 2,700 faculty and staff.

The three local Associations worked closely as they did during highly contentious, negotiations for the 2005–07 contracts.

The wage and salary settlements are similar, providing approximately 8 percent over two years.

All three units maintain their current benefits and cost sharing arrangements for health insurance, including a rebate (negotiated in the prior agreement with the help of an NEA grant) of any excess employer premium payments that in prior years went only to the university system.