School Districts’ Contract Negotiation Time Running Out

By Liz Hayes, The Valley News-Dispatch, Tarentum, Pa.

Aug. 3–Only one of the five Alle-Kiski Valley school districts with teacher contracts expiring this summer reached an agreement with its union.

Deer Lakes was the early bird, settling a new five-year deal last January — months before the prior contract lapsed on June 30.

The contract expiration dates came and went for three of the remaining districts: Armstrong and South Butler County on June 30 and Apollo-Ridge on Friday. Kiski Area has a shot at reaching a compromise before their contract expires on Aug. 25, but the clock is ticking.

The bargaining process at South Butler has been the most publicly rancorous, with the district recently losing a case before the state’s Labor Relations Board after accusing the teachers’ union of unfair labor practices.

The union, in turn, accused the board of using hardball tactics by discussing the possibility of delaying the Aug. 27 start of school.

South Butler teachers and support staff, who also are negotiating a contract, authorized their leadership to call strikes if they deem them necessary.

A strike authorization does not necessarily mean a labor stoppage is imminent. South Butler teachers authorized a strike during volatile negotiations four years ago for the recently expired contract but never walked off the job.

Apollo-Ridge teachers also authorized a strike vote, although a local union representative said a negotiating session in mid-July went well.

“We still have some issues, but the last meeting was more favorable,” said Arthur Aloise, lead negotiator for the Apollo-Ridge Education Association.

Aloise wouldn’t rule out the possibility of a strike, but said he’s hopeful upcoming sessions with the district on Aug. 12 and 13 will be successful.

“Hopefully, we’ll have some more clarity,” he said.

“I’m confident we’ll get it settled,” said school board President Greg Primm. “It’s all been very amicable, very friendly. Nothing that I’ve seen so far indicates that (a strike is in the immediate future),” Primm said.

Jim Smith, a representative from the Pennsylvania State Education Association who is assisting local unions in both Apollo-Ridge and Armstrong school districts, wasn’t as positive.

“I wouldn’t say things are going well,” Smith said Friday of both districts. “It’s Aug. 1 and we don’t have a contract in either one.”

“There’s a lot of issues on the table,” he added without elaborating.

No one from any of the districts or unions would discuss details of their negotiations.

“Apollo-Ridge is a little further ahead than Armstrong,” Smith said, even though Apollo-Ridge has a strike authorization and Armstrong does not. “Armstrong hasn’t met since May.”

Smith said both districts have negotiations scheduled for August.

Thomas Burkett, president of the Armstrong Education Association representing teachers in that district, did not return a call for comment Friday.

Armstrong school board President Rose Stitt declined to comment on the process and referred questions to Superintendent Bill Kerr, who was unavailable Friday.

“Things are going well,” was all Stitt would say. “We have a good rapport.”

Armstrong Business Manager Dale Kirsch would only confirm the district’s negotiating team hasn’t met with the union since May 14. He said the next session is set for Aug. 15.

Only at Kiski Area do both sides of the table agree the bargaining process is going well.

“We’ve had several meetings,” said school board president Gary Haag. “They’ve been very intensive the past two months.”

“Things are going fine,” Haag said, although he wasn’t certain they’d reach a compromise by Aug. 25.

Kathy Bish, the PSEA representative working with the district’s union, said an agreement is possible this month.

Bish said the two sides have ironed out numerous language problems in the existing contract and addressed about 30 of the major issues with which they started.

“We’re down to a few issues remaining,” she said, noting they mostly dealt with economics.

Two negotiating sessions are scheduled in the next week, Bish said.

“Things have been absolutely amicable,” said Carol Langford, president of Kiski Area’s union. “We’re very hopeful at this point.”

Staff writer Celanie Polanick contributed to this report.

Liz Hayes can be reached at lhayes@tribweb.com or 724-226-4680.

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