Contract talks hit low notes

Superintendent, union trade barbs

Superintendent Anne Towle says a bitter row between the Westborough Teachers Association and the town's School Committee over stalled contract negotiations is harming the educational environment for students.

The union says Towle is the problem.

Labor actions, including teachers walking a picket line on Wednesday mornings and following work-to-rule practices that meet minimum job requirements, are distressing students and parents, Towle said.

"When adult problems begin to affect children, you know, it's upsetting to us all," she said.

However, an April 18 announcement by the teachers union stated, "There is an overwhelming distrust in Dr. Towle, superintendent of schools, due to her distortion of facts with regard to contract negotiations and her blatant lack of respect for the teachers in her charge."

The tit-for-tat is the latest controversy in talks that began in February 2007.

In October, the union rejected the School Committee's three-year offer by a 162-to-155 vote, and the teachers have been working without a contract since the fall. With discussions at a standstill, the School Committee decided on April 10 to ask the state Division of Labor Relations to conduct a fact-finding inquiry into the dispute. The inquiry is expected to produce a report within 120 days that recommends a resolution, but the state panel's recommendation will not be binding.

Union members, who do not want to wait 120 days for a resolution, have vowed to attend "in force" the School Committee's meeting on Wednesday to show solidarity and press their demands for higher wage increases, according to the union's statement. As many as 380 teachers could attend the meeting, said Westborough High School teacher Marsha Pelletier, who was acting as union spokeswoman.

School Committee chairman Rod Jané said teachers could speak at the meeting, but he added that he would not let them disrupt the session.

Jané said he was disappointed by the union members' attack on Towle's character.

"I was stunned at their criticism," he said. "It's very unfortunate that they've taken a negative, personal, and critical tone in their press release."

Towle said she was puzzled by the union's criticism.

"I meet with the labor board of the union every six weeks," she said last week. "Nothing has been brought to my attention, and, believe me, plenty of issues are brought to my attention."

Asked to explain why Towle had lost the trust of the district's teachers, Pelletier said any examples were confidential because they involved personnel matters.

But Pelletier said union members are suspicious of Towle's refusal to fully explain proposed flexible working hours, which she said could radically alter their schedules and reduce fine arts courses to after-school programs.

"We were concerned the language in the contract could be twisted," Pelletier said.

Neither side expects to have a draft contract ready before Town Meeting convenes on May 6, when the budget for next fiscal year is to be voted on. A Special Town Meeting session would be required if the school district's spending plan remains unsettled.

The School Committee's latest offer would give teachers 3 percent raises for each of the next three years, a committee statement said. Raises tied to new promotional levels would boost the increases to 5.5 percent.

Pelletier said the committee's offer doesn't cover the current school year, and would leave teachers without an increase for their time working without a contract, she said.

The School Committee recently approved a $36.3 million budget request that would increase spending by 3 percent for the fiscal year starting July 1.

Westborough would be slightly under its Proposition 2 1/2 levy limit with the School Committee's budget, Jané said, while the union's demands would push the town over the cap.

Union president Bonnie Ross said the committee was unfairly targeting teachers as a possible cause of the town's fiscal woes.

"We're sad to see that just our salaries would cost the town an override," said Ross. "I have to assume there are other costs that are affecting the town's budget."