State assails
HSTA stance

Public school teachers
could be forestalled till the
semester ends

---

By Richard Borreca
Star-Bulletin

THE state of Hawaii has filed an unfair labor practice complaint against the teachers union and demanded that the teachers return to the bargaining table.

If the Hawaii Labor Relations Board grants the state's request, it could delay or halt a strike by Hawaii's teachers until after the spring semester is over.

State officials are charging that the Hawaii State Teachers Association is refusing to bargain with the state, has misrepresented the state's position and has rejected state wage offers without studying them.

The state petition asks that the HSTA be "enjoined from striking" and that the December declaration of impasse be revoked.

Teachers union chief negotiator Joan Husted argued last night that the state was "harassing teachers" and engaging in a "public relations ploy."

She said that the state's allegations were without merit, and noted that any labor board ruling could be appealed in state courts.

Davis Yogi, the state's chief negotiator, said the complaint was filed after state attorneys heard the position taken by the union.

"What they are saying is that the (union's) first, last and final position and then a strike vote is not bargaining in good faith," Yogi said. The complaint charges that HSTA "rejected the employer's proposals on the spot" even after the state changed its offer and adjusted the state budget to include more money for pay raises.

"While the employer has moved from its initial bargaining position, the HSTA has remained fixed on its one and only wage proposal," the state said in its complaint. "While the employer has been willing to compromise in order to reach agreement, the HSTA has refused to do so," the complaint said.

Husted, however, said the union and the state "have held innumerable discussions and talks with the state."

"It is a public relations ploy to say, 'See what bad people the union people are,'" Husted said.

The state complaint says the union's "take-it-or-leave-it attitude" shows that the teachers union is bargaining in bad faith. Yogi said he hopes that the action will prompt the teachers to give the state a counteroffer.

If the board rules in the state's favor and the ruling is upheld in court, negotiations would go back to the pre-impasse stage. If the teachers then were still unable to reach a deal with the state, another impasse would be declared, and the two sides would have to go through another 60-day cooling-off period.

The union has been asking for a 22 percent across-the-board increase, while the state is offering a total package that is less but would give starting teachers 20 percent raises, with senior teachers getting a 10 percent increase.

The state's nearly 13,000 public school teachers have overwhelmingly voted to strike, and say they are ready to walk off the job in April if the state does not give them the 22 percent raise.