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MEA News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Janice Gayan, MEA Univerv Director
906-786-7903 or 800-800-0631
North Dickinson superintendent takes money from teachers for health insurance
East Lansing, Mich., May 28, 2004 - Superintendent Claude Siders wasted no time taking money out of teachers’ paychecks for health insurance premiums after a May 25 decision by Dickinson County Circuit Court Judge Richard Celello that denied the teachers’ request to stop the district from taking insurance deductions from their pay.
In a May 27 memo, Siders told teachers they must make up the difference between what the district is contributing toward the insurance premium and the actual cost. The district could take out anywhere from $140.46 to 180.40 starting June 1. However on July 1, those costs will increase to $316 a month which means the district will take over $3.700 per year from teachers for their insurance.
“When the board met in secret on April 20 and imposed their insurance cap on us, they told the public that the cost would be $140 a month. They lied to us and they lied to the community. How can we trust what they say at the bargaining table or anywhere else?” said Kathy Peterson, the teachers’ chief negotiator.
The two sides have been bargaining since July 2003. During the first mediation session on April 20, the board met secretly and voted to impose the insurance cap on the teachers. As a result, the teachers filed unfair labor practice (ULP) charges against the district with the Michigan Employment Relations Commission (MERC). The teachers are represented by the Michigan Education Association (MEA).
MEA also filed a request for a temporary injunction to stop North Dickinson schools from implementing the teacher insurance deductions. While Celello denied the request, he did rule that MERC was the proper forum for the case. He also indicated that from the evidence he heard, the teachers’ ULP seems to have merit. No date has been set for the MERC hearing.
Peterson said, “The district claims it has no money for children, for educational programs or for their teachers, but they do have money to pay for two law firms-- one of which is located in Lansing, to defend their illegal actions. Again, how can we trust people who act like thieves? They’re stealing from their own employees.”