Public Relations > News: Contract Negotiations > District Urges Union to Begin Final-Best-Offer (Nonbinding) Arbitration Process and Put End to Strike - September 18th, 2008

District Urges Union to Begin Final-Best-Offer (Nonbinding) Arbitration Process and Put End to Strike
Union to Vote at 4 p.m. Today on District's Plan to Begin Arbitration

The Souderton Area School District is pleased to announce that the Souderton Area Education Association (SAEA) will be voting at 4 p.m. this afternoon on whether or not to submit to final-best-offer (non-binding) arbitration. If a majority of union members approve, it would put an end to the strike and teachers would return to the classroom on Friday, Sept. 19.

"Since Monday we have been stressing to the union that there is no need to wait until Sept. 24 for the final-best-offer arbitration process to begin - this process is one that can be entered into voluntarily," said Jeffrey Sultanik, chief negotiator for the district. "We are hopeful that the teachers will do the right thing and vote in favor of final-best-offer arbitration so that our children can return to school and we can continue the hard work of reaching an agreement that is fair to both teachers and the community."

During the final-best-offer arbitration process, strikes are prohibited. Should the union membership vote to begin the process, teachers would return to school Friday, Sept. 19 and the bargaining session scheduled for tomorrow would be canceled. The district expects to find out the results of the union's vote by 6 p.m. today. Information about the logistics of the return to school will be announced in a forthcoming press release and through updates on the Web site, www.soudertonsd.org.

Once both parties submit to the final-best-offer arbitration process, they have 10 days to put together their final best offers on all unresolved contractual issues. These offers are then submitted for review to a three-member panel consisting of two interest arbitrators and one neutral arbitrator.

Both final best contract offers will be posted publicly and a 10-day public comment period will follow. Hearings will be held before the panel and the panel is required to consider the following factors:

1. the public interest;
2. the interest and welfare of the union;
3. the financial capability of the District;
4. the results of negotiations between the parties prior to the last best contract offers;
5. changes in the cost-of-living;
6. the existing terms and conditions of the employment of the union members and those of similar groups; and
7. other information deemed relevant by the panel.

Twenty days after the last hearing, the panel is required to issue a written determination. Both the District and the SAEA must either accept or reject the recommendation within 10 days. If both parties accept the recommendation, there would be a binding contract. If either the District or the union rejects the recommendation, the union could go on strike again. The strike would likely happen in late spring of 2009 and the duration would be limited to about a week so that students would be able to receive 180 days of education by June 30, 2009.