By Nick Buglione
The district gave the East Meadow Teachers Association until Oct. 31 to act on the offer, but the deadline came and went, and no vote was taken.
Sent to each of the 680 teachers in East Meadow in late September, the contract offer was the school district's last-ditch effort to avoid fact-finding, a long process that will not necessarily result in a new agreement. "It's not a binding process," said Leon Campo, the East Meadow School District¹s deputy superintendent. "The fact-finder makes recommendations to the parties. It doesn't necessarily result in a new contract. That's the downside of fact-finding. It can add many months to the process."
In fact-finding, both sides submit their arguments to a representative of the state Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) on specific issues that are stalling contract talks. After considering all the arguments, the representative recommends solutions on each issue. Those recommendations, however, are not legally binding.
A PERB representative has already been assigned to the East Meadow case, and the first fact-finding meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 8.
Teachers have been without a contract since their previous five-year deal expired on Aug. 31, 2004. This is the longest that contract negotiations have ever gone in East Meadow without a deal being reached.
John Gallagher, president of EMTA, is hopeful that an agreement will be in place this school year. "There's nothing that precludes us from meeting and negotiating [in between fact-finding sessions]," Gallagher said.
East Meadow teachers recently sent out a letter to residents explaining the collective-bargaining issue, and why they wouldn't consider the school district's three-year offer.
Opinions in the community vary. Overwhelmed by rising school taxes, the majority of which go to paying teachers' salaries, some residents believe the school district's proposal was more than fair. Others have been steadfast in their support of the teachers, posting signs on their windows and lawns declaring that they "deserve a fair contract."
"Someone has to say enough is enough," said Richard Bivone, an East Meadow resident, business owner and civic leader. "You have to look at the economics and the dynamics of the community."
"I'm pretty confident if the teachers do get a new contract, there won't be a tax increase as a result," said Jonathan Laico, who grew up in East Meadow and moved back two years ago. "The money's there. That's why the district is afraid to go to fact-finding."
The teachers claim that the salary increases proposed under the district's last offer, about 3 percent each year, are less than the increases teachers receive in other districts that are comparable to East Meadow.
Teachers were also unsatisfied with the district's health insurance proposal. Though it agreed to continue to pay 85 percent of the teachers' coverage while they kicked in the other 15 percent, the district asked each teacher to pay an extra $240 a year to help offset rising health-care costs. "East Meadow teachers have been paying a higher percentage of health care than all others in Nassau County in the last 14 or 15 years," said Gallagher, noting that East Meadow teachers began paying 15 percent of their health insurance in 1990, at a time when other teachers were not paying that much.
"This was a serious offer we thought would be the makings of a settlement," Campo said. "To say we're disappointed is too small a word. We're at the point where there's not much more the East Meadow School District can do."
Despite a year of meetings, most facilitated by a PERB-appointed mediator, little progress has been made. Teachers have been wearing black, picketing in front of schools, and turning up in large numbers at Board of Education meetings.
Still, Campo applauded teachers for their professionalism inside the classroom throughout the process. During previous contract negotiations, East Meadow teachers have refused to advise clubs, take classes on field trips, and show up for extra help. "Our teachers have acted professionally, and they continue to act professionally," Campo said. "I cannot fault them in that regard."
Comments about this story? NBuglione@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 236.
