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<p>The West Side Career and Technical Center has bargained &#8220;in bad faith&#8221; with the union and has been ordered to return to the bargaining table by a hearing examiner for the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board.</p><p>The last contract expired in August 2016, but the two sides agreed to an extension through August 2017. The union has worked under terms of the expired contract since then. The union filed a charge of unfair labor practices with the PLRB on Oct. 12 last year.</p><p>The 16-page ruling hits on a wide range of sticking points in the protracted contract negotiations, but the heart is the CTC&#8217;s ability to demote full-time employees to part-time employees. Part-time employees are generally not considered part of the bargaining unit.</p><p>This became an issue when art teacher Margaret Mullin was demoted from full time to part time in 2015, before negotiations began. The association grieved the issue, saying it should have been consulted. An arbitrator sided with the union.</p><p>According to the PLRB ruling, CTC lead negotiator Charles Coslett has consistently demanded the Mullin decision be reversed in any contract and that the CTC be given the right to demote unilaterally. Coslett has also made a demand he frequently makes in negotiations: that any &#8220;past practices&#8221; &#8212; accepting actions based on what has been done rather than what is explicitly in the contract &#8212; be eliminated in the new contract.</p><p>The union countered with an offer that positions could be changed from full time to part time when an employee retired or resigned through the &#8220;Memorandum of Understanding&#8221; Process, which typically means the two sides agree in writing to action acceptable for that specific case without setting a precedent in future similar cases.</p><p>The ruling determines that the CTC bargained in bad faith because Coslett ultimately dismissed the offer, insisted reversal of the Mullin decision was non-negotiable, threatened to show up at negotiation sessions only to read the newspaper or a book to fulfill the requirement to meet, and unilaterally declared they had reached &#8220;an impasse&#8221; and thus ended negotiations.</p><p>Among other things, the ruling orders the CTC to bargain in good faith immediately, and to post a copy of the ruling &#8220;in a conspicuous space&#8221; accessible to employees</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">West Side Career and Technical Center </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_185181_317221971718337_2130605403_n.jpg</photo0><caption0>West Side Career and Technical Center </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Ruling: West Side CTC bargained with union in bad faith