By Tracy Ouellette
SLN Staff
East Troy Community School District Administrator Chris Hibner informed the School Board the teachers in the district failed to certify a collective bargaining agreement for the 2017-18 school year.
Of the 113 eligible voters in the East Troy Education Association, only 44 cast their votes with the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission for certification. Because less than half of the teachers voted, they will not be represented in salary negotiations next year.
“They will no longer have a collective bargaining agreement for next year,” Hibner said Tuesday morning. “Right now, their current collective bargaining agreement is in effect until June 30, after that they will no longer have specific representation in bargaining.
Hibner said this has happened before and the Education Association went a year without representation until they recertified the following year.
“Under Acts 10 and 32, the state only allows for collective bargaining for base wages that are not not above the DPI increase, now there is no collective bargaining agreement so no bargaining will take place next year,” Hibner said.
Because there is no agreement, it will be at the discretion of the School Board as to what base wage increase to give the teachers.
“They will look at the budget and our structure and consider how to stay competitive and attract and retain quality staff,” Hibner said.
Still under construction?
Resident Tim Griffin addressed the board during public participation, expressing his concern that the wood and metal shops were not complete and available for student use yet at the high school.
He told the board there had been a lot of improvement of the situation over the past two weeks, but there were still problems.
Griffin said some of the machines had not been wired properly and that the teacher even had brought in his own equipment for students to use, so he could teach his class.
Building and Grounds Manager Bob Ellis disputed Griffins assessment of the situation and denied the machines were “wired backward” and told the board they had been ordered wrong and they were working to correct the situation.
Griffin interrupted Ellis, insisting some of the machines were wired backward, and Ellis asked “Did I interrupt you when you were speaking?”
Griffin apologized and let Ellis finish before adding some of the machines were wired backward as one machine had to be pulled away from a wall so it could be used.
Griffin also told the board that some of the classrooms such as the robotics lab (which he uses for the robotics club) and the new social studies rooms at the high school were “echo chambers from hell” and urged the board to do something about the acoustics.
“If more than two people are talking in the room, you ears start ringing,” Griffin said.
He suggested the board approve some acoustic tiles or drapes to help with the sound issue.
No sale
No decisions related to Byrnes and or Doubek were made in the closed session Monday night.
“At this time, the board has no contract for consideration. It is administration’s hope to bring forth options at the January board meeting,” Business Manager Kathy Zwirgzdas stated in an email Tuesday morning.
