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DALLAS TWP. — The Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board has dismissed a complaint the Dallas School Board filed to try to recoup compensation from teachers for some days not worked during a labor strike.
School Board attorney Vito DeLuca clarified the decision, stating that the Labor Relations Board did not believe there was enough support for an unfair labor complaint against the Dallas Education Association.
Dallas School Board filed the complaint March 27, alleging the DEA “conducted a strike in the current school year in violation of the Public School Code and Act 88; refused to participate in mandatory final best offer arbitration under Act 88; and served strike notices to the Dallas School District without legal authorization for a second strike,” according to a letter from the state Labor Relations Board, dated April 19.
Under Act 88, teachers can strike twice in one school year. The first strike must end in time for the district to complete a state-mandated 180 days of school by June 15, while a second strike must end in time to complete 180 days by June 30.
The 2016-17 school year will end on June 30, but the DEA has a second strike notice issued for June 2.
The Labor Relations Board decision was a fourth attempt by the school board to acquire guidance from state agencies to withholding teachers’ pay for days not worked, DeLuca said.
“The school board has an issue about paying employees with public funds for days they did not work,” DeLuca said.
The school board also sought advice from the state Department of Education, Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System, the state Attorney General’s Office and the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, DeLuca said.
“The fact that these elected officials cannot get guidance from state agencies is a little disconcerting,” he said.
The district is looking to save more than $500,000 in what it says are salaries and benefits that union members have not earned because they failed to work seven of the contracted 185 days.
The next step for the school board will be to decide whether to dock teachers’ pay for the missed days, DeLuca said.
If the board decides to take that action, teachers could counter by filing a labor grievance, which could lead to a “grievance arbitration” before an arbitrator chosen jointly by the DEA and the board, DeLuca said, adding that both sides would have to adhere to the arbitrator’s decision.
The school board and its union have been in contract negotiations since 2014 to develop a new teachers’ contract. The current contract expired in August 2015.
Teachers went on strike Nov. 14 and remained on strike past the state-mandated return date of Dec. 13. Teachers returned to the classrooms on Dec. 19.