The Lucknow Sentinel, 1979-01-17, Page 4Page 4'-14rcknow .Sentinel, Wednesday, January 17, 1979
ants trustees to sit in on teacher otiations
BYJEFFSEDDON
• goderich school board
trustee Dorothy Wallace
said Monday at the board
id education meeting that
one of the ways to ensure
"-`"'-""""thdr all trustees know
how contract negotiation's
are going is to permit
them to sit in on
bargaining- sessions, as
spectators.
Wallace told the' board
that one of the .problems
the board experienced
during the 1978 secondary
school teachers' strike
that' shut down the five
county high schools for 31
days -was' that man
Y
trustees • Were 'linin- how negotiations are.
formed., evolving."
"During •last year's Wallace was not ad -
negotiations all of us vocating all trustees
were pretty much in the becoming involved in the
dark,." she told the board, contract talks but merely
"If we open negotiations . giving them an op -
up: to both' sides It will portunity to sit in ,on a
give,. each of us an oph, bargaining session. She
portunity to see firsthand said she was, in favor of
R
the board's negotiating teacher, are equal'insize
team remaining the -way and : both have the
'it was but felt trustees ' responsibility , of keeping
should have a chance to their respective sides •.
sit in as spectators. q informed. She said
Colborneodericli teachers only take back
town, 'ship trustee Shirley items requiring a vote by
Hazlitt ,pointed -out that their me'mbershi'p,
negotiating teams from leaving the bulk of
both sides, board and negotiations to • the
committee. I-l+azlitt said
that if the board gave
trustees"a chance to sit in
on contract talks the
teachers would have to be
"' "'"X''h'f'f`ered the same
privilege.
Board ,.chairman John
Elliott pointed out that at
the. outset of talks very
few people would show an
interestbut when the
t,. ; dI negotiations got "down to
the nitty gritty" ' the
committees, could find
:themselves with "a room
,full- of people", He said
that couldcreate
problems for both sides.
Hazlitt added 'that -
sometimes bargaining
sessicins 'get yuitc
emotional" • :and if
someone, hadp't followed
the talks from Start to
finiah .they could easily
'.`misi•nterprett' .the
C'n1ToilS..
W&.&ll)t'iace" arguedthat
manytirnes during the
strkethcie .were charges -
that teach, ys and
trustees. were being fed
bad information and she
felt that -it the..negotiatu-g
sessions .were opened up
that, prospect would h,c'
'less likely" Co happen
ttg'crin 1 .
lii:zfitt Suggested. that.
the 'hoard would hive. to
lie very • cftr.pful it didn`t'
get i•ntE a position where
• - it could be accused ri:f
"negot:ia.ting.i,n had ' h
negotiating' thro gh
the'prc-Ss.'
The ..board intends to;
keep negotiating sessions •
closed to everyone
member of• the
,".
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