DeLand, FL – It’s safe to say that contract negotiations between Volusia County Schools and its 3 workers’ unions aren’t going well.
2 weeks after reaching a tentative agreement on a 2-year deal with the local chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the school district declared impasse in those negotiations on Thursday, hours after union leaders announced that they would renege on the deal.
AFSCME’s Local 850 represents over 1,200 VCS employees in support positions, including bus drivers, school advisors and cafeteria workers.
The sudden about-face came on Thursday after leaders on both sides met to sign off on the exact words of the agreement that was supposed to be voted on later this month by union members and the Volusia County School Board. It would’ve applied for fiscal years 2015-2016 and 2016-2017.
AFSCME President Rita Ware says the insurance premium numbers that were used to strike the initial agreement on January 27th had changed dramatically when it came time to finalize the paperwork, making costs much higher for union members than she expected.
“We were shocked that the district would give us inaccurate numbers at the table,” Ware added. “When you go to the table, you are expected to be honest and exchange accurate information. We did that. Unfortunately, the district did not.”
In a press release sent by VCS after the announcement, district officials say it was made clear to AFSCME leaders before the tentative agreement was announced that the numbers used for health insurance premium reductions were estimates, not final figures.
“Congress delayed the Health Insurance Tax in late December and premiums were projected to go down by approximately 2%,” said VCS spokeswoman Nancy Wait. “It is important to note the union never sought to negotiate these rates.”
Ware said AFSCME first heard about the discrepancy in the numbers late last week and that the union was disappointed that VCS would declare impasse at this stage in the negotiations.
“We wish the district would have given us accurate information and we wish we could have worked toward a deal,” Ware added.
VCS Chief Operations Officer Greg Akin said the AFSCME bargaining team is now having “second thoughts” about the deal, one that the district claims would raise salaries for employees by an average of 3.5% starting in July 2016 and give better health insurance benefits for lower costs than similar employees in Brevard and Flagler’s public school districts.
“It really is disappointing that the union signed an agreement and now is not honoring it,” Akin added. “This was the first step in raising salaries for these deserving employees.”
AFSCME now joins the Volusia Educational Support Association – the union that represents those who work with special needs kids, the school district’s clerical staff and teacher aides – and the Volusia Teachers Organization in impasse status with the district. Unlike AFSCME, VESA and VTO never reached a deal with the district before it declared impasse last month.
The impasse declaration means the start of a mediated process where both sides will make their case to a special magistrate. The School Board can accept the magistrate’s recommendation or unilaterally impose a bargain for 1 year if the sides cannot come to an agreement. Negotiations can continue during that time.
Copyright 2016 Southern Stone Communications.