Franklin Lakes School Contract Unresolved Monday Night

FRANKLIN LAKES, NJ — Negotiating teams from both sides of a bitter school contract dispute will meet with a state mediator Monday night to try to end a nearly two-year contract dispute.

A mediator from the state Public Employment Relations Commission was appointed and will be meeting with representatives from the Franklin Lakes Education Association and the Franklin Lakes Board of Education at 7 p.m., said Meredith Barnes, a spokesperson with the New Jersey Education Association.

As of late Tuesday night, there was no word from either side that an agreement had been reached.

The mediation session comes on the same day that 276 FLEA members, including dozens of teachers, at all four schools walked out in protest of not having a new labor contract in nearly two years. It is the first teachers' strike in the town's history, according to the union.

"The FLEA team is available to continue negotiations all evening and night in an effort to resolve this labor dispute," Barnes said. "We remain resolute that our students and community deserve great public schools and our members deserve a fair contract."

A handshake deal was in place Friday between representatives for the board and the FLEA to try to end the dispute, but the board rejected the deal.

Board President Joseph Rosano met with Joseph Tondi, an FLEA representative, and the two had a tentative, handshake deal in place. However, when Rosano brought the deal back to the board, officials rejected it, said FLEA President Sharon Miliano.

The sides tried meeting again Monday morning, but the board's entire negotiating team was not there, Miliano said.

"We would really like to get this settled," Miliano said. "I'm waiting for the phone to ring before the day is over. I wish they would put the same focus on the negotiations that we are."

Rosano could not be reached for comment regarding the handshake deal.

The board sought an emergency court order Monday ordering teachers back to work.

"The students and community deserve better," said Miliano. "My members, the teachers and support staff in our schools, deserve better. Time and time again this Board of Education has failed us."

The district learned of the teachers' strike early Monday morning and sent out a reverse-911 call notifying parents. Administrators supervised students who went to school until they were released to parents.

Rosano met with the union's representative several times beginning in April and up to Sunday night. The parties, according to the board, "were very close to mutually acceptable terms," and the strike "calls into question their commitment to resolving this dispute."

Teachers have been working under an expired contract since July 2017. Union members will start a third year under an expired contract in September if matters do not get resolved. The sides have been negotiating since March 2017.

The association asserts that the board has "unnecessarily prolonged contract negotiations to continue to use our diminishing salaries" as a source of local tax relief.

Officials with the New Jersey Education Association issued a joint statement about the strike and contract negotiations.

"We stand in proud solidarity with the members of the Franklin Lakes Education Association, who have taken a bold, principled stand on behalf of their students and the future of the schools in their community," NJEA officials said. "By making this difficult but necessary decision, they are demonstrating their commitment to their students, their community and the future stability of the district."

The board called the walkout "illegal" in a statement issued Monday morning. The board said the strike defies a Superior Court judge's instructions and breaches an agreement the union has with the board.

The board is seeking emergency court action ordering teachers back to work.

Health care costs continue to be a sticking point for union members. Medical insurance contributions have outpaced any salary increases the union would have received. Contributions are based on how much members earn. The more someone makes, the more they contribute.

"Without meaningful relief from the crushing cost of imposed health care contributions, current district educators cannot afford to continue working and prospective educators will not be willing to come to Franklin Lakes," NJEA officials said in their statement. "The students in Franklin Lakes deserve the kind of schools that only dedicated professionals like the members of the FLEA can provide."

Previously, the Board of Education presented the union with a number of proposals that would increase teacher compensation and reduce members' health insurance contributions. The union has rejected them.

A state-appointed fact-finder was brought in to foster better negotiations between the sides. The fact-finder provided a report of recommendations to both sides, which the union rejected. Patch could not immediately obtain a copy of the report.

In 2017-2018, 27 Franklin Lakes teachers made more than $100,000 annually, according to an annual list provided by the state Department of Education.

Related:

• These Franklin Lakes Teachers Are Among Highest Paid In NJ
• Franklin Lakes Teachers Blast Board Of Ed. For No Contract

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com