The Times-Tribune, January 23, 2011, Sunday

Copyright 2011 The Times-Tribune
The Times-Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania)

January 23, 2011, Sunday

Teacher contract negotiations will likely hinge on health benefits, experts say

BYLINE: Erin L. Nissley, The Times-Tribune, Scranton, Pa.

BODY:
Jan. 23--Negotiations over teacher contracts have already begun at three Lackawanna County school districts and, though officials are tight-lipped about how it is going, experts expect the main issue to be health care contributions.

Both Scranton and Abington Heights' teacher contracts expire at the end of the school year, and Old Forge has been working without a contract since June.

Although union and school district officials have given little information about what has happened at the bargaining table, national collective bargaining expert Alex Colvin, Ph.D., said the biggest issue for unions across the country is benefits, particularly health care.

"We're in a low-inflation era with no downward or upward wage changes," said Dr. Colvin, an associate professor and chairman at Cornell's Department of Labor Relations, Law and History. "But health care costs are rising --and health care benefits are changing."

Further muddying the waters is what will happen with state funding this year. Paul Shemansky, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, said school districts and union members are waiting to see if Gov. Tom Corbett and the state Legislature will cut education funding this year, which could have a severe effect on district budgets.

"No one knows what they're going to get from the state next year," Mr. Shemansky said.
History rocky

Acrimonious negotiations have been a hallmark for all three districts in the past, and it seems one district could be headed for a strike later in the year.

At a school board meeting in November, about 20 Old Forge School District teachers held signs urging a swift end to ongoing negotiations. In October, the Old Forge Education Association filed an unfair labor practices complaint al-leging that the school board refused to meet with designated negotiators.

Negotiations over Old Forge's last teacher contract lasted four years and included four strikes, one of which lasted 19 days.

Abington Heights, too, has its share of drama over teachers contracts through the years. The school board's approval of the most recent contract in 2007 was the first time since 1985 that the union did not strike while in the midst of contract negotiations.

Scranton narrowly averted a planned strike in 2008 when an agreement was reached hours before the first day of school. Before the two sides agreed, there had been numerous pickets and protests.

Scranton's most recent negotiations centered on salary and health insurance contributions. Teachers had lamented health insurance costs that were significantly higher than surrounding districts, and starting salaries that were much lower than other districts.

The 2008 contract brought teachers closer to the pay and insurance benefits teachers at surrounding districts receive.

Rosemary Boland, president of the Scranton Federation of Teachers, said negotiations will be starting soon.

In Old Forge, union leaders said the school district has proposed a small raise for the upcoming contract but seeks to increase the teachers' health premiums, which the union said would lead to a net loss of about $800 per teacher per year.

Abington Heights School District Superintendent Michael Mahon, Ph.D., declined to comment on any proposals from the district or the union. Abington Heights Education Association President Marcelle Genovese did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Under the last contract, teachers at Abington Heights did not have to contribute to health insurance premiums. But the school district limited some benefits and saw savings through changes in the type of insurance and prescription plans offered.

Options available
Once common in union contracts across the country, contributing little or nothing to health insurance premiums has become more and more rare as health care costs soar, Dr. Colvin said.

"It's logical that unions try and defend what they have," he said.

Mr. Shemansky said teachers contracts across the state vary greatly when it comes to health benefits. Some unions have agreed to higher deductible and co-pays in lieu of contributing to health insurance premiums, while others have negotiated cheaper, more restrictive health insurance plans instead of agreeing to premium contributions.

"Co-pays and deductibles are coming out of pocket," Mr. Shemansky said. "It's not that teachers don't want to pay health care costs. They've worked with districts."

Another wild card for negotiations this year is what the state will do to education funding. Under former Gov. Ed Rendell, education funding increased by $3 billion. But Mr. Corbett has said he will not raise taxes to address the state's fiscal difficulties and many experts, Mr. She¬mansky among them, fear deep cuts are coming that would create a void in many school districts' budgets.

The uncertainty about state funding and the overall economy might make it difficult for unions to get any big bumps in pay or benefits this year, and union leaders are aware of that, Mr. Shemansky and Dr. Colvin said. But whether that will affect a union's willingness to strike remains to be seen.

Mr. Shemansky said Pennsylvania gives teachers unions few options to resolve a negotiation impasse because the state has not yet passed binding arbitration law.

Even so, the vast majority of teachers contracts in the state are resolved without strikes, he said. Many unions are opting for short-term contract extensions and others are bringing in a neutral party through the state Department of Labor to look at proposals from both sides and make suggestions.

Some information compiled from staff reports.
Contact the writer: enissley@timesshamrock.com
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