Teachers sue archdiocese over union

A union representing teachers at eight regional Catholic high schools, including Bishop Fenwick in Peabody and Pope John XXIII in Everett, wants each school to honor a contract that expires Tuesday, one day before the schools break financial ties with the Archdiocese of Boston.

The Boston Archdiocesan Teachers Association, which represents 225 teachers at the various schools, is suing the archdiocese in federal court, alleging that the plan to make each school independent on Wednesday amounts to union busting.

The union wants to have the eight schools declared the "alter ego" of Archdiocesan Central High Schools Inc., which has long governed the schools with a central board in Boston. The archdiocese set up new corporations for each school last February, appointing local trustees to run the schools, effective Wednesday.

The other high schools are Cathedral in Boston, Archbishop Williams in Braintree, Cardinal Spellman in Brockton, Marian in Framingham, and Matignon and North Cambridge Catholic in Cambridge. New boards at each school have authority to set tuition, raise funds, and draw up labor agreements for lay teachers and counselors.

The teachers association, which has bargained with the archdiocese for 38 years, alleges that the schools will run as they always have, but without a union. The eight schools are incorporated with the same group of officers, led by Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley as chairman. The central board still owns school properties, approves curriculum, and appoints local trustees, according to court papers.

The complaint states: "The property, the product, the staff, the curricula, the addresses and the final decision making authority for all these eight high schools will reside with the Archdiocese of Boston, and its agents. . . . The only difference will be that the teachers will no longer . . . have the right to collectively bargain."

The union also alleges breach of contract. The labor pact, most recently renegotiated two years ago, states that "Archdiocesan Central High Schools Inc. or its Successor Body" must recognize the union, according to court papers.

The complaint says the archdiocese failed to have its "successor," or the eight new local boards, bargain with the union. The independent boards also have been dealing directly with the teachers to draft new employment agreements, a violation of the contract, according to court papers.

Church-sponsored schools do not have to recognize labor unions under federal labor law. But since the archdiocese recognized the union 38 years ago, the teachers association wants the new boards to follow suit, a union lawyer said.

"These teachers have dedicated, on average, decades of their lives to these schools," said Terence P. Noonan, a lawyer for the union. "They don't think a fringe benefit of working is job security. They think it's an integral benefit. They need to know they have a safe and sound economic future. That can only follow from knowing that they have continuing employment, through a collective bargaining agreement."

Sean Sweeney, a lawyer representing the archdiocese and the eight schools, did not return a telephone call seeking comment. The archdiocese last month filed a motion to dismiss the case, which the union is opposing. A hearing date has not yet been set on the motion, according to the clerk's office in federal court.

Sister Kathleen Carr, superintendent of schools for the archdiocese, declined to discuss the lawsuit. But she said the plan to spin off its regional high schools was discussed with the union during negotiations two years ago.

"We were very upfront with them," Carr said. "We were very clear about the fact that we could not continue with the model of governance we had. It wasn't working anymore for our schools, which are all very unique."

Carr said the archdiocese cannot afford to continue subsidizing high schools. Principals also think they could run more efficiently, and raise more money, if they were governed by a local board, she said.

"We felt we really needed a group of people, at the local level, who would invest themselves to secure the future of each school," Carr said.

At Bishop Fenwick and Pope John, the archdiocese appointed a mix of alumni and business and civic leaders to steer the schools down a new path.

Over the last few months, the archdiocese has gradually turned over responsibility to each board. Four-year leases, at a cost of $1 per year, were signed with each school. They include an option for the schools to buy their properties, Carr said.

"We're still trying to work out the details, but at some point, they will be able to buy these properties," Carr said. "Our immediate goal was to give the boards plenty of time [to organize], to prepare for the opening of school."

At Bishop Fenwick and Pope John, the shift to independence is viewed as a mixed blessing. Union membership has fallen at each school over the last year. Union rules allow a member to withdraw but still receive benefits of the union, Noonan said.

Teachers were notified last March that their contract would expire Aug. 31, and were told they had to reapply for their jobs, according to interviews.

At Bishop Fenwick, all but two of the 65 faculty reapplied. Ken Ellis, president of the trustees, said trustees made a fair offer to teachers.

"We understood that this is a big change for them," said Ellis, who declined to give specifics about the agreement. "Hopefully, the big winners here will be the teachers and the staff."

Barbara Brigante, chairwoman of Bishop Fenwick's science department, said, "There is some anticipation. But we're hopeful that in the end, everything will work out. We feel positive about the changes."

At Pope John, the transition has been harder. After three veteran teachers were not rehired and several more teachers left on their own, a group called "Concerned Pope John 23 Alumni -- A Coalition for Change" formed. Members worry that teacher turnover will hurt the reputation of their alma mater, said Susan Clarke, an organizer.

"We take pride in our education," said Clarke, whose group has written several letters to local newspapers. "Some of the most senior teachers were released. . . . We're concerned the quality of the education is going to deteriorate."

The group was scheduled to meet with trustees last night to discuss its concerns. "We want to hear them out," said Bill Connors, president of the trustees at Pope John. "It's important to get all viewpoints. A school is not just made up of teachers and students. Alumni are very important."

Connors, a Pope John graduate, said 15 of the 36 faculty will be new in September. But the turnover is only about five more than usual, he said. "We're having growing pains, but I don't think the reasons some people left, to take a higher-paying job elsewhere, for example, is not unusual," he said.

Pope John offered teachers a 6 percent raise, boosting the average salary to about $39,000. The agreement also includes a tenure-like clause that gives teachers job security after three years.

"In an academic setting, we felt that teachers needed some assurance about their job," Connors said. "We've made the decision to put our money in our teachers and guidance counselors, where it should be."

Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com