Curmudgeon's Corner
cur-mud-geon: anyone who hates hypocrisy and pretense and has the temerity to say so; anyone with the habit of pointing out unpleasant facts in an engaging and humorous manner
Village Buzz - December 9th
The Germantown Education Association with 287 members voted 228 Yes, 2 No and 57 didn’t vote. Those not voting could likely be considered to have voted no. Even with that having been said, the vote total was just under 80% in favor of retaining the union. I was, frankly, surprised that this carried and that it carried by such a large margin.
There is no way of knowing if any of those voting yes had decided to suspend their union dues payments. That had been reported to be the case in some districts.
The GEA is thus able to negotiate for wages although there are tight limits placed on any increases that might be negotiated. Workplace rules and benefits are not subject to negotiations as Act 10 was written.
The majority of unions that voted were in favor of continuing to keep the union in place, although the total number voting was quite a bit less than the total number of bargaining units in the state. Those that were operating under extended agreements were not required to vote. This vote was changed since now at least 51% of the total membership had to approve the issue. Formerly, a simple majority of those who voted was required.
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