EDUCATION

GASD board rejects fact-finder's recommendation

Ashley Books
Chambersburg Public Opinion

GREENCASTLE - The Greencastle-Antrim school board and the teachers' union remain deadlocked on a new contract, after the board voted to reject a fact-finder's recommendation at its Dec. 7 meeting. 

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The fact-finder -- a neutral third party appointed by the state -- met with each side and its legal representation at the same time and they took turns presenting their case. The fact-finder asked questions, then drew up a report.

The fact-finder's report recommended small salary increases for the four years of the contract and minimal changes to the teachers’ health care plan, according to a news release from the Pennsylvania State Education Association. 

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The board said in a statement that the fact-finder found that Greencastle-Antrim provides the highest salaries among districts in the county, and that the union acknowledged that the district's local tax effort is also the highest in the area. 

The statement added that the fact-finder did not consider these points in his final report, and that his recommendation "can only result in even greater disparity between Greencastle's salaries and tax rates as compared to those of other districts in the county." 

"Such recommendations ignore the fundamental economic concept of market value, are fiscally irresponsible, and unfair to the district's citizens whose taxes fund the operations of the district," the statement said. 

The teachers are disappointed with the decision, the PSEA said, as the union voted to accept the fact-finder's report on Wednesday, Dec. 6. 

“We believe the report reflects our long-standing commitment to the Greencastle-Antrim community and our students," said president of the union, Ellen Kirkner. “Our teachers are an educational investment in the community." 

Because the board voted to reject the report, teachers continue to work under the terms of the previous contract, which expired on Aug. 31. Both sides have been negotiating a four-year collective bargaining agreement for almost a year. 

Before bringing in a fact-finder, Greencastle-Antrim also used an arbitrator to help with negotiations. An arbitrator spends time with each party and tries to find common ground when creating a new contract. 

Unfortunately, this method didn't help the two sides sides resolve their differences and they then moved to a fact-finder as the next step. 

Under state law, the school board and the teachers are now required to re-vote on the report in no less than five days, but no more than 10 days after the initial vote. 

To urge the school board to re-vote in favor of accepting the report, teachers demonstrated on Friday, Dec. 8 outside of the schools before going in for the day to teach.

“We sincerely hope the board reconsiders,” said Brandon Solomon, the union’s chief negotiator. “We would like to start the new year fresh and focused on delivering a first-class education to our students without the uncertainty of an expired contract.”

If the report is rejected again, Board president Jim Winslow said both sides will get together and decide what the next steps will be. 

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