One of the biggest errors that boards of education make in collective bargaining concerns the selection of their bargaining team. A negotiator should be used who knows labor law, understands the educational process and its common practices, and is knowledgeable about school law. In addition to the negotiator, who should be the spokesman, the…

This paper explores the politics of various types of teacher compensation reforms, with a particular focus on pay for performance. It examines the political positions taken by the nations two teachers' unions, the extent to which these reflect the preferences of teachers, and how both influence the decisions by localities to implement reforms. New…

In the process of developing a coherent bargaining position, the school board's chief negotiator functions as a group leader, responsible for controlling behavioral dynamics so that the school board is productive and cohesive. Dissonance and dissent are expected components of the position-formulating process, and the negotiator should be…

As teacher associations and unions have increased in number and strength, superintendents and education boards have had to devote more time to the process of negotiations. In the winter and spring of 1989, 400 questionnaires were mailed to a random national sample of school superintendents to examine the following areas dealing with negotiations…

Since collective bargaining in public education is here to stay, boards of education should learn to accept it for what it is--an adversary process. The author contends that striking is not a very viable weapon in the arsenal of the teachers' union because the schools will continue to operate, and public pressure against prolonged strikes and…

This paper, addressed to public school employers, discusses lessons to be learned from the Wisconsin Legislature's passage of a 1978 law known as mediation-arbitration, which allows employers and unions to agree to an alternative voluntary impasse procedure to the one set forth in the statutes. First, the paper discusses the history of the agency…

A study examined behaviors of participants trained in a nonadversarial model of contract negotiation, focusing on possible influences of formal and informal power structures, written and unwritten rules, and firmly entrenched adversarial behavior on the bargaining process. Participants were representatives of a district's teacher union and board…

Across the country citizens' and parents' groups have demanded participation in the collective bargaining process, which traditionally included only boards of education and teachers' union representatives meeting behind closed doors. The first state to require that bargaining in the public sector be conducted in the open (fishbowl bargaining) was…

This publication is a transcript of Superintendent Angus McBeath's presentation to legislators and media at an Issues and Ideas Forum hosted by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Lansing, Michigan. McBeath discusses education reform in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, including: (1) Basic Elements of Reform; (2) School Employee Union Involvement;…

Experience indicates that school boards have an inadequate understanding of labor relations, for they tend to relinquish too much of their authority to teachers' associations. A survey of 11 articles pertaining to labor relations from the "American School Board Journal," 1970-82, reveals the following consensus on areas unsuitable for inclusion in…

Although ideally collective bargaining is a rational decision making process, in actuality, irrational forces frequently intrude, making a call for mediation a logical, necessary step. When communication breaks down between union and management, a mediator's objective assessment and recommendations become essential. For mediation to work, the…

This ten-year longitudinal case study examined collective bargaining between the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers and the Pittsburgh School Board. Data were collected by reviewing all formal contract proposals for the years 1968-1978. To ascertain the impact of collective bargaining on educational policy, policy issues were separated from…

The effects of Florida's "sunshine" law opening collective bargaining sessions to the public are outlined in this presentation, which summarizes the results of a survey of school board members, superintendents, and negotiators. Of the 101 school board members (one-third of Florida's total) responding to the questionnaire, 68 said that…

School improvement cannot be negotiated. In many educational circles, negotiation carries a negative connotation that creates a perception of adversaries, causing trust levels between participants to decline. Decisions made in an atmosphere of adversarial relationships between teacher unions and school boards are not always the productive…

The public has a right to know how its elected representatives (school board members) are governing the schools, including how effectively they are representing the public's interest in such important areas as collective bargaining. The tendency of some educators (and school boards) is to look down on citizens who show interest in educational…