Union Philosophy

By W. Charles Perry, MSPE

I support the right of all workers to form collective bargaining units, agency shop rules, binding arbitration for grievances, union representation on district committees, use of district employees for essential services, and prevailing wage guidelines where these employees do not exist.

I support the right of all workers to form collective bargaining units. I believe that this form of bargaining simplifies administration of the district. I believe that collectively-bargained long-term contracts damp the salary swings that follow the short-term business cycle. And I believe that collective bargaining units can provide powerful motivation for communities to compensate their teachers and staff fairly.

2. Do you support Agency Shop for school employees?

Yes.

2. Do you support Binding Arbitration for grievances?

Yes.

3. How do you feel about classified employees being members of important decision-making committees within the district?

I believe that their views should be represented on all committees that affect their employment.

4. What is your position on contracting out of school services, such as cafeteria, custodial, maintenance, transportation, etc?

I prefer direct control of most of these functions by the administration. Highly specialized services that employ few workers # such as automotive maintenance # might be performed better and more economically by an outside business. Daily ongoing time-sensitive services such as custodial and maintenance functions should be performed by administrative staff almost regardless of price. I am ambivalent about cafeteria services being contracted to outside services: personally, I do not care for the quality of food that they provide; however, I recognize the special sanitation problems and high overhead costs associated with mass food production and distribution. When hiring outside services, I support prevailing wage guidelines.