LISBON - The Columbiana County Board of Developmental Disabilities voted Tuesday to reject a fact-finding report which called for 2 percent wage increases for the next three years for workshop employees.
The wage increase was one of 11 issues addressed in the report written by fact-finder Marc Winters - a report which sided mostly with the views of the Columbiana County Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Employees Association. The union has been working without a new contract since the old one expired on Dec. 31, 2008.
"While there are recommendations and aspects of the fact-finder report that the board is amenable to, it does not have the option of selecting which recommendations it agrees with and therefore, is required to reject the report in its entirety," the unanimously approved 7-0 board resolution said.
The resolution also said "the board finds the fact-finder's recommendations to be overly restrictive, unfeasible, and generally not in the best interest of the board to adopt."
"We believe we still can negotiate a fair contact, but this was not the proper document," Superintendent William Devon read from a prepared statement.
Members of the union, which represents 106 workshop workers, voted Monday night to accept the fact-finder's recommendations, noting in a press release that they wanted to "move on for the good of the students and consumers that we serve. We hope that the board will find it prudent to take a similar action."
Union President Barb Norton spoke to board members before they went behind closed doors to discuss the situation, saying "We've done our part. I pray you do what's right."
After the meeting, she urged county citizens to contact the superintendent and members of the board to insist that they return to the bargaining table to negotiate a fair and equitable contract. Negotiations started in October 2008 and continued until an impasse sent the case to a fact-finder, who issued his report last week.
"Clearly we're disappointed that the board chose to reject a neutral hearing officer's recommendations to end this dispute. The (union) is committed to reaching a fair and equitable agreement so that we can concentrate on serving the clients and families we care so much about," Norton said.
Devon stressed that the board wants to continue negotiating. He said they discussed some alternatives with the fact-finder but the final document didn't reflect what they discussed. He also pointed out this was the first contract negotiated since there have been private workshop providers, saying, "We need to adjust to a business model."
Four workshop specialists remain on layoff from December. The board had announced a contract was pending to buy an already established candle-making business for the workshops to guarantee steady work for clients, but the deal apparently fell through, with Devon announcing last month they were stepping away from negotiations with the company for now, even though they were still interested in acquiring the business.
In the fact-finding report, Winters described a contentious relationship between management and the union which he suggested requires a third-party intervention to rebuild the labor/management relationship.
"The mistrust between the parties is so contentious that, in my opinion, it has poisoned the collective bargaining relationship," the report said.
Norton told board members they didn't feel appreciated. She said they dedicate their lives to the program, but enough is enough.
Regarding the wage issue, the fact-finding report said the employer offered to match the insurance package given to the teachers' union to cap the employee's monthly premium contribution to $45 for single and $90 for family, but contingent on a three-year wage freeze. The union wanted to keep the insurance contributions at those amounts also, but requested 3 percent wage increases for each year of a three-year contract. They also asked for an increase to wage indexes for custodians, vehicle operators and intermittents.
The fact-finder disagreed with the 3 percent wage increase, saying the union members were paid fairly, but deserved a 2 percent wage increase every year in 2010, 2011 and 2012, with a $400 signing bonus for 2009 for a four-year agreement. Step increases would not be eliminated and indexes would not be increased.
The fact-finder recommended to keep the status quo regarding a proposal to change the definition of full-time and part-time employees, with management wanting to increase the number of hours worked by part-timers. The union opposed the notion, worried that workers would be working full-time hours without receiving full-time benefits.
In another issue, the employer wanted to change the Christmas leave from five paid leave days taken during the two weeks at Christmas to three paid leave days and adding a new holiday for the day after Thanksgiving and an additional day at July 4. Part of the reasoning was to have more coverage at Christmas. The union said there were other ways to accomplish the same thing without changing the Christmas leave. The fact-finder stuck with the status quo.
Other issues dealt with calamity days and working conditions related to the number of bus aides. The board won on one issue regarding the use of the habilitation manager as a driver for community outings when no other driver is available or an extra vehicle is required.
