Welcome to summer break! I want to take a brief moment to share some of the frustrations our certificated, and to a lesser extent, the classified negotiating teams have faced at the bargaining table this year. To summarize the situation, the District wants to take furlough days even though our District has a large ending balance and the governor is promising an increased baseline budget for K-12 in his May revise. On top of all that, the District wants to take furlough days even if the tax measure passes in fall.

North Dakota Public Employees Association staff and members are teaming up with American Federation of Teachers volunteers from across the country to go door-to-door on the week of June 3-9, spreading the word on why we should VOTE NO on Measure 2. Click here for more information.

Margaret Rodrigues' guest column for the Morgan Hill Times offers words of wisdom from Dr. Seuss for our new graduates.  It also challenges the new graduates to seek out a mentor who helped them in their education and to give back to their community.  Lastly, this article encourages non-graduating seniors to keep working to reach their goals.

On Tuesday, May 29, 2012 at the meeting of the HCRC, John Ripley was named the new chair of the committee.  The committee serves as the bargaining agent for Baltimore County employees' healthcare benefits under each of the MOU for the six bargaining unions and SMC (supervisory, managerial & Confidential group).  This is the first time since the committee has been formed that the president of the Fire union hasn't been the chair.  It is John's committment to the employees of Baltimore County that has lead to this opportunity. John fortitude will be tested immediately since the county has presented changes to the committee already and tied them to the ratification of new MOU's.

Challenger Kirsten Perales was voted in as NBEA co-president at our general membership meeting held May 30, 2012.  Welcome to Kirsten and a heart-felt thank you goes out to our outgoing co-president David Gryte for his leadership and member focus over the past two years. 

NBEA executive board and membership extend a big thank you to our negotiations team of Dan Schindler, Andrea Grote and Muffy Henjy for all their hard work this year to come to a settlement with the North Branch School Board.  It was a stressful and tense situation that brought a contract of less than preferred status, but likely the best that could be done given the situation and lack of school board support for the educators in our district. 

Thank you negotiators!!!

NBEA membership voted to ratify the tentative contract agreement by our negotiators (Muffy Henjy, Dan Schindler and Andrea Grote) at our end of year general membership meeting.  NBEA Executive Board expects NB School Board to accept settlement at their board meeting on June 14, 2012.  Attend the school board meeting wearing your "Education Proud" t-shirts to continue to show we are united!  Look for specific contract details under "Our Contract" tab on website sometime this summer.

On May 3, Chapter 43 of the North Dakota Public Employees Association met on the campus of Valley City State University to elect an executive board and organize their members. Click here to learn more.

On May 23, ten Education Austin members,  representing schools all over the district, filed a group grievance insisting that the district retract new language it wrote into new one-year professional contracts:  "Your salary includes consideration for all assigned duties, responsibilities, and tasks, regardless of the actual number of hours or days (including days not designated on the school calendar) that you work during this Contract.”This means that professional employees could be “assigned” duties outside our 187-day contracts without the district paying us for doing them. 

The grievance addresses the fact that this new language was adopted without the administration taking it to Education Austin for consultation, as required by district policy. This means that no professional employees were informed or had any voice at all into our contractual changes. This language is also in direct violation of several consultation agreements that Education Austin has negotiated with the administration.    

The new language also states: "The Professional Employee agrees to satisfactorily and timely submit or account for all grades, reports, school equipment or other required items upon request from the  District..." This provision could be used to violate state law, which states: "...a school district may not require an employee... to pay for  instructional materials or technological equipments that is damaged, stolen, misplaced, or not returned..." [with the possible exception of teachers' personal laptops provided by the district]. 

Education Austin will pursue the grievance throughout the summer.  We insist that  the district rescind the new language and notify all affected employees that the new contract language is null and void.   To receive detailed updates or to get involved in Education Austin’s Contract Committee, which will be working on this issue, contact the union  at maryk@educationaustin.org

The June 12 statewide election is coming up soon, and the North Dakota Public Employees Association is urging its members to VOTE NO on Measure 2. You don't even have to wait until Election Day to put in your vote. Click on this link to find out how to get your absentee ballot mailed to you, or where and when you can vote early in your district.