Schools
Report: Kerfuffle Over Open Negotiations, Even Though Both Sides Agree
Both sides agree on open negotiations, but there's a disagreement over who gets to decide how to conduct negotiations.
The board of education and the teachers' union are in a disagreement over something both agree on.
The issue is that the teachers' union, the Howard County Education Association, contends that the Howard County Board of Education should have negotiated with the union before deciding, in a closed session on Sept. 26, to vote in favor of having open contract negotiations, according to a Howard County Times report.
The board believes it can open or close negotiations based on the Open Meetings Act.
The teachers' union, represented by its president Paul Lemle, asserts that the board needs to negotiate open contract talks due to the current contract in place between the board and the union. The State of Maryland Public School Labor Relations Board issued a decision on Wednesday in favor of the union, stating that open or closed meetings are a subject of negotiations, according to a press release from the school system.
Nonetheless, both sides support having open negotiations. Lemle told the board the union is favor of open negotiations and the board itself voted to open negotiations.
Despite this, the school board is appealing the labor relations board's ruling.
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