Our angry friends, aka ANTIs, repeatedly claim that the Vista Teachers Association owes a large sum to the school district. In addition they have said the VTA knows it owes the money and refuses to pay. They ask when will the VTA pay the money it owes to the district. They also imply that this money would go a long way toward paying for needed school supplies for our VUSD students. Yet the almost fifty million dollars wasted by Jim Gibson causes them no concern at all. They say it was only school bond money.
Of course we all know the truth. The VTA owes no money to VUSD, none at all. And if they were concerned about wasting taxpayer money they would not support the greatest waster or taxpayer money in VUSD history, Jim Gibson.
Yes,there is a dispute between the VTA and VUSD over what is fair compensation to the school district for a release time president. When the legal dispute is settled, it may turn out that the VTA does owe some money to the school district due to a new interpretation of labor law. However, the statue of limitations on such matters reduces any potential award to $128,242 no where near the half million dollars they SCREAM about in all capitals in their posts.
It may just as likely turn out that school district actually owes money to the VTA. It may well turn out that the VTA has been overpaying the district for the the last six months. It seems the VTA to be above reproach has been paying the district the full president's salary and benefit cost as though the district might prevail, unlikely as that is.
The amount the VTA pays for the release time president was collectively bargained in fair bargaining over many years.
The amount decided for the reimbursement was found to be according to labor law in March 2003 during another legal review by a different law firm.
Reimbursement by the VTA was based on the long standing principal going back to the very beginning of public school collective bargaining in the mid 1970's of paying for the replacement teacher not the full president's salary. When union presidents were released for the day to participate in bargaining, their associations paid only for a sub for their class.
If this new interpretation holds, small teacher associations (bargaining units) will have to stop collective bargaining or only bargain on the weekends as they will not be able to pay a full day's teacher's salary for each release day.
The law firm, Fagen, Friedman, and Fulfrost LLP, hired by our district last fall and whose lawyer came to this brand new conclusion about a collectively bargained policy common in hundreds of school districts across California, including many others in the North County, is a very new law firm founded only four years ago. The quote on their website, "Since our inception in June 2006 with nine attorneys, the firm has grown to 55 attorneys."
The mission statement of F3 (as the law firm calls itself)is, "Our Mission is to help clients achieve their missions." In other words their legal decisions always come out the way their clients (management) want them to come out.
Fagen Friedman and Fulfrost is a law firm used exclusively by management and never by labor.
It is not a surprise given their motto and their clientele that they would decide that our VUSD contract provision bargained for by the VTA for reimbursement of the VTA release time president was 'possibly' illegal.
Personally I do not think their unique opinion will hold. It goes against more than four decades of collective bargaining law.
Here are the articles in the North County Times if you wish to read further:
-----------------------------
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/vista/article_4e832ad6-cc37-5559-95aa-326d5b65e538.html
VISTA: Union challenges VUSD repayment request
By STACY BRANDT - sbrandt@nctimes.com | Posted: February 10, 2010 4:20 pm
------------------------------
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/vista/article_deb20837-3110-5b3d-833a-9a5364675995.html
VISTA: Union reimbursement challenge in VUSD could set precedent
By STACY BRANDT - sbrandt@nctimes.com | Posted: January 9, 2010 7:00 pm
----------------------------
VISTA: School board agrees to seek limited reimbursement
Union has reimbursed district less than cost of teacher's salary
By STACY BRANDT - sbrandt@nctimes.com | Posted: December 10, 2009 11:20 pm |
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/vista/article_5061cdeb-dfc6-546f-b4c2-0e5bc0c59b43.html
--------------------------
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/vista/article_5134d22d-eaec-503b-98ff-064e15921fcd.html
VISTA: VUSD board to discuss union reimbursement
Lawyer tells district current arrangement is illegal
By STACY BRANDT - sbrandt@nctimes.com | Posted: December 7, 2009 8:20 pm |
-----------------------------
http://www.nctimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/article_6164f23a-ab93-5977-af1c-23b5bfc4db9b.html
FORUM: Vista Unified is seeking legal opinion on VTA pact
R. ELIZABETH JAKA -- VUSD trustee | Posted: October 2, 2009 12:00 am
-----------------------------
http://www.nctimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/article_63509623-7cf4-5259-9fb7-2817cc3670d8.html
FORUM: Vista teachers union needs to return money
---------------------------
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/vista/article_c9e6be3a-c966-5c67-9dbd-d6744ed46385.html
VISTA: School board trustee wants review of union chief's pay
Gibson asks for lawyers to examine salary issue
STACY BRANDT - sbrandt@nctimes.com | Posted: September 9, 2009 8:05 pm |
JILL PARVIN -- Vista | Posted: September 25, 2009 12:00 am |
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment