Teachers' union admits unfair labor practice

PALMER -- The local teachers' union admitted last week it engaged in an unfair labor practice in current contract negotiations when it refused to give the Mat-Su Borough School District information on its members' health insurance.

The disclosure came as part of an agreement reached between the two parties to resolve a complaint the school district filed with the Alaska Labor Relations Agency last spring.

Under the agreement, the Mat-Su Education Association will provide the details of its health insurance plan to the district within 15 days of the Dec. 8 agreement. However, MSEA President Barbara Morris said the union has already given the information to the district.

"Some things are worth fighting over and some things are not worth fighting over," Morris said Wednesday.

MSEA and the school district are embroiled in contentious labor negotiations to come up with a new contract for Valley public school teachers. Their contract expired in June. The union is seeking a two-year contract, while the district is looking to extend it to three.

After mediation between the two groups broke down last month, the case was taken to an arbitrator. He is expected to report his advisory recommendations as early as the end of this week.

The district wanted the insurance information because the union has asked the district to pay all of its health care costs over the next two years, school district spokesperson Kim Floyd said Monday. The details were needed to see if MSEA benefits were being administered conservatively and efficiently, she said. The district also needed to estimate yearly increases in the insurance costs to make decisions in the current negotiations.

"We're pleased with the agreement because we're able to access the information we needed in October of last year," Floyd said.

Morris said the union provided the district last spring with the same health plan information it gives its members and thought this was adequate. However, the district disagreed and filed the complaint with the labor board.

Another set of labor complaints could be resolved in the coming weeks. The union made several claims to the labor agency that the district did not bargain in good faith in the last round of negotiations concluded in 2002. The agency held a hearing on the allegations last week, Morris said. Although the claims relate to negotiations that have concluded, the resolution will have precedential value for future talks, she said.