Bargaining 101

I have to admit, I'm a little embarrassed. I didn't think this conversation was necessary. I really, really thought you already knew. I guess I just assumed they covered this at school. And now that I have to bring it up, it feels awkward.

It's time we had "The Talk."

Before you all start experimenting on your own, I think it's best that you understand how a contract is created. I'd rather you learn to bargain safely, than side bargain with your friends and wind up with unintended consequences.

When a government bureaucracy and a collective bargaining unit love each other very much, sometimes they decide to come together and create a tentative agreement.

All different types of organizations do it basically the same way, but there are some differences, so I'm going to focus specifically on how teachers make a contract.

I know, I know, you're totally grossed out right now thinking about  PAE and PSD alone together behind closed doors. But I promise it's a perfectly natural process, and the better you understand it, the less scary it will be.

Let's start at the beginning.

As a teachers union, you have elected certain people to represent you, like your president and vice-president. You also have a set ofrules or constitution by which you govern yourselves. These are the rules that you have chosen to abide by. Included in these rules is the fact that your president can appoint a team to bargain on your collective behalf. This is known as your bargaining team. They are typically in place months (or even years) before your old contract expires.

Not all teams can be as cool as your bargaining team.

During the year leading up to a new contract being formed, your bargaining team along with many other volunteers will conduct a series of one-on-one interviews. Some of you may remember last spring when teachers came to your building to speak with you during your lunch break or planning time. They asked you questions about what you like about your job and what changes would help make your work even better. It's not a perfect system, but the one-on-one team tries to meet with as many teachers as possible to get specific, personal feedback. During this time, any teacher (or counselor or school psychologist) who is a member of PAE is welcome to contact the president and/or the bargaining team with concerns.

(Unfortunately, teachers are demanding to be heard right now, when they should have spoken up months ago. This isn't the time to start making demands. We're nine months into this pregnancy, you can't decide now you only want a son.)

After the one-on-one interviews are complete, a "Discernment" is created. This is where all the comments are compiled and themes are noted. This is a very long document and may include things like "24 teachers were concerned about lost planning time due to the shortage of substitute teachers, 84 teachers are struggling to get print-shop orders back on time, and 1 teacher insists we put a Ferris wheel in the teachers' parking lot." This document is used as a guide for the bargaining team to know what issues are of most importance to teachers. It is also sent to the superintendent so that she is aware of what issues will need to be addressed (it is also sent to WEA to double check for things like bias, etc, and to help locals compile data in a meaningful and accurate way).

When the time comes, the union will "Demand to Bargain" with the district. The two teams decide on a time and place where they can meet privately (this privacy thing is important, and we'll come back to that later). If all goes well, both sides will come ready to bargain, and that is when the magic happens!

The two sides will bring a contract proposal. They will look at each other's proposals and try to find common ground. There will be a back and forth dance as each party gives a little and takes a little. This may include the use of "supposals." Unlike a "proposal" which is generally a full contract, a supposal is a small portion of language within a proposed contract that basically says, "Suppose we gave up this thing here-- do you suppose you'd be willing to give us this other thing over here?"

After months of courtship, the two teams eventually reach a tentative agreement or "TA."  This is a fetal contract that both sides believe is agreeable.  The union's bargaining team then brings this TA to the executive board for a stamp of approval, after which the team brings it to the members for a vote.

Look at my proposal! It's so colorful and feathery!

If the members like the TA, and they vote to approve it, it becomes ratified and is well on its way to becoming a viable contract capable of surviving outside the bargaining womb. This is the end we are all hoping for.

But it doesn't always work out. Sometimes the members don't like it. Sometimes it gets voted down. Actually it happens a lot. It may be that the bargaining team was way out of touch and the whole contract stinks. But more than likely the contract is pretty darn good, and there are just a few things that people were unhappy with that still need tweaking. Unfortunately the contract must be voted on as a whole, so there is no easy way to know exactly why people voted no.

When a TA is voted down, all is not lost. The two teams simply go back to the bargaining table and keep working. Think of it as false labor. You may have thought the baby was coming, but it's gonna be a few more days (or even weeks).

#stillpregnant #falselaborsucks

Sounds simple right? But there are some places where things can go quite wrong.

Let's go back to the topic of privacy. Transparency is good right? Everyone wants more transparency.  It seems PSD is constantly posting updates while PAE isn't. Why? Is PAE hiding something?

Let's imagine you were buying a house and you had 1400 children.  Ouch!

Move over Duggars, we've got you beat!

Your realtor takes you around and shows you a dozen houses each with their own unique benefits and drawbacks.  Your teenagers  love the house with the big basement (they're thinking big party!). Your spouse is in love with the house that has the giant kitchen with double ovens and a walk-in pantry. Personally you don't care what the house looks like, you just want the one with the big garage and air conditioned shop. Despite all these amazing bonuses you could be enjoying, you've got a nagging feeling in the back of your mind that you ought to buy the house that has the huge fenced-in yard so your littlest kids can have a safe place to play.

Each of these houses are amazing, and they are all certainly better than the two bedroom apartment the 1402 of you are currently sharing.  Any of these choices would be wonderful. But now that everyone has seen ALL the different options, they all want different things. Now no matter what incredible house you choose, someone is going to be unhappy. They caught a glimpse of what was possible, and now nothing less will satisfy.

That's what public bargaining is like for PAE. There are hundreds of members each with unique needs. PSD is simply an organization. They have no personal needs, and the agreed upon contract will not affect anyone on the PSD bargaining team individually. They essentially have no dog in this race. But we've got 1400 dogs, and they're all hungry.

We're hungry! Hungry for a fair contract!

That's why PSD keeps posting every little update. They want you to be jealous and fight with each other.  They have nothing to lose. But PAE has everything to lose. Every time a member demands to know where we are at in negotiations, they are undermining the entire process. If you knew every topic that was ever discussed, you would be forever sad thinking about what you missed. Instead, wait for a TA to be posted and then see all the positive benefits you have to gain.

The best kind of prize is a surprise!

Does that mean you're blindly following and taking whatever we're given? NOPE. Not at all. It means you are patient and wait to make up your mind about a contract until you actually have a contract to make up your mind about.

Remember, only the bargaining teams are allowed to bargain. You have a team bargaining for you. They go to the district bargaining team and make requests on your behalf. It is inappropriate for you to go to members of the other team and make requests or offers (or even give opinions). It's called side bargaining, and it is in violation of good faith bargaining practices. If you have an opinion on what you want to see happen in this contract, or what you are willing to vote for, that should have been expressed long ago to your bargaining team. That's like trying to get on the field after the teams already been drafted. It just doesn't work that way, no matter how great a player you are.

You're on the sidelines, Buddy. You aren't going to play in this game.

(Right now teachers are going to the district's bargaining team and telling them what they will and won't accept in a contract. That isn't the place to air your concerns. That's like going behind your partner's back and talking to the doctor about finding a sperm donor. Not cool!)

This is where unity comes in. The whole point of having a union is so that you can bargain collectively. You have to trust your team to bargain for you. You have to support others and be happy for the gains they receive in their contract (even when you don't get everything you want).
Janus is changing everything.  Your membership numbers are in serious jeopardy. If people don't feel like the union is valuable to them, they can and will leave. Every time you attack other teachers publicly or undermine your leaders, you punch another hole in the union life raft, so you had better learn to play nice.

Now some of you are asking yourselves right now Why does this person think they can give us advice? They're not even a teacher. They obviously don't have all the facts" 

It's true, I don't have all the facts. Neither do you. But at least I understand the rules, and now hopefully you do too.

If you understand how bargaining works, not only are you more likely to be able to make your voice heard, but you'll be less frustrated by the whole process in general.

And when a good contract does come along (and it certainly will) you won't have regrets about the ugly things you did and said while you were bringing this contract into the world.

Now put away your black tee-shirts, put on some scrubs, and get ready to catch this baby because she is coming soon!






The community is watching.