Teachers maintain stance on school layoff policy

The Colfax teacher’s union presented a counter-proposal to the school district at a third mediation session June 14, but their proposal still does not budge on the issue which has deadlocked the two sides—the priority for laying off teachers in the district.

“I was disappointed in their counter proposal,” said Supt. Michael Morgan, who now represents the school district in mediations.

Colfax Education Association President Cary Cammack said the union didn’t change its counter-proposal because the district has not offered a suitable trade-off in terms of bargaining.

“If the district wants to make a major change like that, they need to give us some sort of incentive. This is bargaining—what are you going to give us in exchange for that?” Cammack told the Gazette after the mediation session Tuesday.

At the June 1 mediation, the district gave a counter-proposal to the CEA. The CEA presented its own counter-proposal at the Tuesday mediation. The CEA has asked the school district to present another counter-proposal at the next session, now set for July 20.

The CEA is pushing for its new contract to keep the long-standing policy of basing layoffs strictly on seniority with the last person hired first on the layoff list.

The district is calling for layoffs to be based on subject area first and then on seniority. This was the content of the district’s counter proposal presented June 1.

A representative from the state’s Public Employees Relations Commission presided over the Tuesday mediation.