Dr. William Allan Kritsonis - Collective Bargaining, PPT.

1. William Allan Kritsonis, PhD

2. COLLECTIVE
BARGIANING
DEFININTION
Collective bargaining is defined
as the negotiation between an
employer and a union to
determine the wages, hours and
other terms of employment for a
group of employees with
common duties and interests
and similar pay. The collective
bargaining agreement will be
active for a set period of time.

3. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
IN EDUCATION
The major purpose of
collective bargaining in
education is to develop and
nurture those educational
leadership skills which are
germane to the
understanding and
application of collective
bargaining law.
 The major thrusts are to
provide the students with a
conceptual base from which
they can exert educational
leadership, develop those
technical skills necessary to
function effectively, and
identify and foster human
skills associated with
successful contract
development and
management.

4. TEACHER UNIONS/COLLECTIVE
BARGAINING
Background in 1935 Congress passed the National Labor
Relation Act (Wagner Act) which guarantees the right of
private employees to form and join unions to bargain
collectively.
A wide range of provisions may be negotiated in
collective bargaining between teachers’ unions and school
districts.
The following are some of the matters that are often the
subject of bargaining: academic freedom, curriculum,
wages and salaries, training, hours, workload, and
teaching responsibilities, tenure, and probationary period,
promotion, reappointment personnel files etc.
Constitutional Considerations: the First Amendment of
the Bill Of Rights provides: “Congress shall make no law
prohibiting…the right of people peaceably to assemble.”
This right, as applied to the states through the Fourteenth
Amendment of the Constitution, has been interpreted to
give teachers and other employees the right to free
association, including the right to join a union, such as
the National Education Association or the American
Federation of Teachers.

5. STATE AND LOCAL PROVISIONS
GOVERNING COLLECTIVE
BARGAINING
The National Labor Relations Act governs
labor relations in private schools, subject
to some limitations. A teachers’ union of a
private schools should determine whether
the NRLA applies to its school. State labor
statues generally govern labor relations
between public school districts and
teachers’ unions. Collective bargaining
statues differ considerably from state to
state, with some states providing much
more guidance and specific rules than
others.

6. Forming and Joining A Union To
Bargain Collectively
Laws governing the representation
process are often quite complex.
This process prefaces the collective
bargaining process and involves
numerous considerations, including
types of employees that will
constitute a “bargaining unit,” as
well as the selection of an
appropriate union to represent
teachers. In the public school
sector, state law affects both of
these determinations. Some states
exclude certain employees from a
bargaining unit, including
supervisors and individuals in
management positions.

7. BARGAINING UNITS
Teachers seeking to join for collective bargaining must
define an appropriate bargaining unit. Under most labor
relations statues, only those individuals who share a
“community of interests” may compromise an appropriate
bargaining unit. Community of interests generally means
that the teachers have substantial mutual interests,
including the following:
Wages or compensation
Hours of Work
Employment benefits
Supervision
Qualifications Training and skills
Job functions
Contract with other employees
Integration of work functions with other employees
History of collective bargaining

8. ILLINOIS EDUCATIONAL
LABOR ACT
The Illinois Educational Labor Act is
an act to establish the right of
educational employees to organize and
bargain collectively to define and
resolve unfair practice disputes and to
establish the Illinois Educational
Labor Relations Board to administer
the Act.

9. ILLINOIS SCHOOL DISTRICT
BUDGET PROCESS
Collective bargaining is one of the most
complex areas of school administration.
Successful experiences in this
endeavor involve the ability to timely
orchestrate a myriad of special skills
and knowledge. School law, labor law,
personal administration, human
relations, labor relations, school
finance, community pressures,
communication skills, and common
sense is included in this myriad.
Access to timely and accurate
information is also vital to successfully
completing negotiations. They also
publish a annual IASA publication to
assist in the collection of key salary
and general contract data that can be
used in collective bargaining planning
and decision making.

10. COLLECTIVE
BARGAINING TIGHTROPE
The collective bargaining process between a
board of education and a teachers’ union
can have wide-ranging effects, not only for
board members and teachers but also for the
community. The superintendent, often
caught in the middle, must put politics
aside and focus on doing what’s right for the
students.

11. ILLINOIS PROVISIONS
GOVERNING COLLECTIVE
BARGAINING
Illinois: Educational employees at all
levels permitted to bargain under the
Illinois Educational Labor Relations
Act. However, several types of
employees, including supervisors,
managers, confidential employees,
short-term employees, and students,
are excluded from bargaining by
statue. Impasse procedures include
mediation and fact-finding.
Arbitration is permitted. Strikes are
permitted after several conditions set
forth in the statue are met.