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WRIGHT TWP. &#8212; The Crestwood Area School Board announced at Thursday&#8217;s meeting that it took a pair of legal actions &#8212; one against the support staff union and one involving the Wilkes-Barre Area Career and Technical Center.Board Solicitor Jack Dean said that an unfair labor practice complaint was filed Thursday afternoon against the Crestwood Area Educational Support Personnel Association. Dean said the complaint contends that the union is not bargaining in good faith. The union&#8217;s contract expired more than two years ago.In the case of the technical center, the board filed a suit in Luzerne County court seeking additional representation on the technical center&#8217;s board.Board member Gene Mancini, chief negotiator for the school district, said representatives of the union have &#8220;not been willing to meet at reasonable times and places&#8221; despite repeated requests dating back to June 6, 2015.Rose Sturgeon, chairman of the association, said that proposals in salary and benefits have been only minimal for people who work &#8220;very hard to keep this district going,&#8221; adding that there is no reason to meet.The union&#8217;s contract expired in 2013. In the interval, Mancini said that two tentative agreements and a fact finder&#8217;s report have been rejected by the association.Mancini said that the Wilkes-Barre Career and Technical Center&#8217;s board is dominated by the Wilkes-Barre Area School District. Wilkes-Barre Area has five members on the board to Crestwood&#8217;s one.&#8220;It&#8217;s time to end the political shenanigans down there,&#8221; Mancini said.Mancini resigned as Crestwood&#8217;s representative on the tech school&#8217;s board Thursday. He was replaced by Norbert Dotzel.Crestwood is seeking to gain a second representative on the board with Mancini pointing out that Crestwood &#8220;contributes over $1 million to the tech school budget.&#8221;If Crestwood&#8217;s suit is successful, Mancini said that the potential exists that Nanticoke, which currently has two representatives, would lose one member.When questioned by Mountain Top resident Joe Kaminski about the cost of the suit, Dean estimated it to be $13,000. Kaminski then contended that the money might be better spent in other phases of the curriculum.Kaminski also inquired about progress in the search for a successor to out-going superintendent Dave McLaughlin-Smith. He was told by board Chairman Jerry Orloski that four interviews were conducted recently. Orloski estimated that resumes were submitted by 10 to 12 persons.When Kaminski suggested this number, in light of the importance of the post, was low, Orloski responded that the number was &#8220;similar to what we experienced previously.&#8221;McLaughlin-Smith&#8217;s retirement has been announced as being effective on Jan. 8, 2016.Financial issues were also raised by Orloski in light of the state budget deadlock in Harrisburg.Albert Melone, of the Melone Agency of Pittston, said the impasse &#8220;is having no impact.&#8221; Melone, financial advisor to the board, said that a surplus in the 2015-16 budget, plus a steady flow of real estate taxes is keeping &#8220;business affairs normal.&#8221;&#8220;We&#8217;re fine,&#8221; he said.Melone added, however, that he doubts that a budget compromise will be negotiated in the near future.<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Tom HuntingtonFor Times Leader</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>The Times Leader newsroom may be reached at 570-829-7242 or on Twitter @TLnews.</shirttailMeta></div>

Crestwood Area School Board files unfair labor complaint against support staff union