Julie-Ann Fuchs, assistant superintendent for business in Kaneland CUSD 302, was assistant business official at Kaneland for three years prior to her July 2009 appointment. During that time, she was responsible for the oversight of the district's communications and served on the Illinois chapter of the National School Public Relations Association (INSPRA) board for two years.
Is it that time already? It seems once a district settles a contract, it is only a matter of time until the process must start all over again. Regardless of the process that a district and union choose to negotiate a contract, the communications involved in the process must be open, clear and timely. But why does collective bargaining present so many communications challenges to school districts?
Collective bargaining has been a struggle for many districts since the 1960's when the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and National Education Association (NEA) gained strength to become some of the more powerful forces in education. This description was especially true at Kaneland CUSD 302 during the most recent negotiations between the Kaneland Board of Education and the Kaneland Education Association (KEA).
What began as an amicable process ended with the threat of a teacher's strike, the need for a federal mediator and a contract approved with a 4-3 board vote.
Communications at the beginning and the middle of the process appeared quite open and clear. Items were discussed with a genuine spirit of what was in the best interest of both sides. The breakdown in communication really began to spiral out of control once the financial issues were brought to the table.
Using the district website
Once the KEA filed a notice of intent to strike, the board decided to publish information about contract negotiations on the Kaneland website. This decision was not taken lightly.
The information posted included: a copy of the expired contract; the first salary proposals from each side compared to the most recent salary proposals from each side; the financial implications of the KEA proposal on the district budget; the issues associated with a strike; a comparison of pay structure with nearby districts; information on raises for other Kaneland employees; and the principles on which the board based its negotiation.
The KEA stated publically that the information was presented from a one-sided manner and did not accurately reflect the negotiations. Additionally, the KEA did not choose to use their website to provide alternate information.
After the board posted this information on its website, the media and online blogs negatively tainted the community's perception of the KEA, primarily due to the struggling economy. This perception continued to complicate the actual negotiations at the table by taking away time that could have been spent discussing the issues.
Following the settlement in October 2008, both sides reflected on the value, or lack thereof, of posting information on the district's website during the collective bargaining process. The KEA definitively felt the board had a great advantage because of its ability to control the information and the timing of the postings. In reflection, some board members would have made this information available sooner, while others would have preferred to not post any information. Board members, on the other hand, felt their hands were tied by the union's filing of an "intent to strike" notice, which only gave the board 10 more days to reach an agreement.
Moving forward
School leaders must find ways to create a compelling picture of how they want their school system to be. They must have a vision and be able to move forward regardless of obstacles. They must create a structure that maximizes the human resources in the system. And they must have the ability to monitor progress, learn from mistakes and improve performance.
With today's pressures of high expectations that will produce results quickly, leaders often face ethical dilemmas where they will need to avoid common pitfalls during contract negotiations as well as during other trying times. Some of those pitfalls are:
The entire Kaneland community was very relieved when a strike was avoided and a settlement was reached. Even with a new three-year agreement, the administration and KEA have committed to being proactive by taking actions now that will help to build a strong partnership so that the impact on student learning is always affected positively.
Proactive communications
Here are additional things that a district can do to be proactive when communications and contract negotiations intersect:
By taking these actions, boards can be hopeful that future negotiations will be more amicable until a settlement can be reached.