Editorial
Negotiating

Westminster Advisory Board Member Keith Harding made a good point during the Feb. 6 tri-board meeting, but he missed the bigger picture.

Harding is right that the Ashburnham- Westminster Regional School District needs to take a hard line with their negotiations with the teachers' union. They need to consider the impact of potential salary increases on the district budget; they need to weight the effects of the cost of each supplementary budget item such as health insurance, stipends, number of paid vacations days and professional development days.

But taking a hard look does not necessarily mean reducing current teacher salaries.

Few would argue that the vast majority of teachers work hard and they deal with more issues and more children than most parents.

They are also part of a union, which is designed to fight and protect their rights, their salaries and their goals.

Harding rightly notes that watching the details of the budget and the contract is important. But the notion that the school committee can go in to the negotiations and demand a pay cut from all the teachers is a non-starter.

Would you stay at a job after your boss said he or she is cutting your salary? No matter how nice the working environment, most people would leave.

The demand would put union members up in arms and probably create a situation where a compromise could not be reached. It would be a situation that would not only make the budget more unpredictable, now and in the future, but also raise questions about the functionality of the school district. Reducing salaries is certainly a strong shot across the bow, but how much leverage does it really provide?

For better or worse, unions are here. It's futile to enter into a prolonged debate about the need, or lack thereof, for their existence as part of the school budget discussion. Passing or not passing the proposed budget will not weaken the unions in Massachusetts. That's an argument for another day.

Reality says the school committee should propose a contract with reasonable cost-ofliving increases and monitor and control non-salary costs. And teachers should also go into the negotiations with a clear idea of the impact of their salaries not only on their wallets, but on the district's budget and the tax implications for the community.