Chair
Heidemann, Members of the Board, Superintendent Carlson, and all those who have
gathered to observe.
My
name is Paul Goupil and I am the lead negotiator for Anoka Hennepin Education
Minnesota, our district’s teachers union.
I
am here with an invitation to the next contract bargaining session between our
district and our teachers.
As
you know, this round we have decided to open school employee contract
bargaining in a new way.
Instead
of keeping our work private, we have opened up the process. Our proposals and agendas are shared
publically on our website and we have invited our members and neighbors to
attend the meetings in person.
Over
the past nine bargaining sessions attendance has increased steadily, to the
point that we have needed to move to larger rooms. Interest is high, and growing.
We
are reaching a crucial point in bargaining. Virtually everything is now on the
table. We have come to some small agreements on language items. Both sides have
made economic offers, and the teachers have made some economic movement.
However,
the district side has now made three economic offers, none of which have
changed in value. Any increases to one kind of compensation have come with
equal decreases in another compensation area.
In total, the district offers have the same effect on teachers as our
last settlement of a soft freeze. All of this despite an improvement in
district finances.
We
don’t want to get bogged down in simply rearranging offers. Bargaining needs to
be more than just pushing veggies around the plate to make it look like you’ve
eaten your broccoli.
So
what’s missing? We have increased transparency, teacher involvement, and
communication.
The
one thing missing is you. We invite you to attend our sessions. In the past,
when we’ve had difficult problems, we’ve solved them by all coming together and
working toward a solution.
It’s
time for that now. We hope to see you at
our office, 4:45 pm, November 6th. Thank you.
