By Andrew Cluley
Ypsilanti, MI – Teachers from the Dexter, Lincoln, Manchester, Willow Run, and Pinckney school districts joined Ypsilanti teachers on an informational picket line outside Ypsilanti High School last night.
The rally urging school board members to get involved in contract negotiations was held just before last night's Ypsilanti Board of Education meeting.
School board member Tom Reiber says he thinks school administrators could take the first step toward moving the stalled contract talks forward. Reiber and trustees Floyd Brumfield and Andy Fanta handed a memo to teachers saying they were committed to providing a fair, equitable, and affordable contract.
Board President Diane Kerr dismissed the memo as a campaign tactic for Brumfield and Fanta, who are both up for re-election June 9.
Reiber conceded the district cannot afford a four percent pay increase for teachers, but suggested administrators might consider giving back pay raises they received this year as a sign that the district will bargain in good faith.
Ypsilanti teachers have been working under provisions of their old contract which expired eleven months ago.