The state's largest teachers union filed two unfair labor practice complaints with the National Labor Relations Board against Lackawanna College on behalf of the college's faculty, the Pennsylvania State Education Association said.
The college's administrators and the faculty's union, the Lackawanna College Education Association, have been at loggerheads for years over ratifying a new faculty contract, which would set raises and healthcare benefits.
After more than two years of negotiations among administrators and the union, they failed to enact a contract. The administration declared an impasse earlier this year and implemented the first two years of a contract - the college's last offer - without the union's consent.
The Pennsylvania State Education Association, which represents LCEA, filed the complaints because it believes the college had "no right" to implement its last offer, the state association said in a statement.
"Up to now, LCEA and its parent union, PSEA, have falsely portrayed the facts relating to our nearly three frustrating years of negotiations with them," the college said in a statement issued Friday.
The union did not accept the administration's final offer, which included 3 percent raises the first three years of the contract, plus 2 percent raises the final two years.
The union claims the college's implementation of that offer is illegal.
An employer can declare an impasse and implement its last offer if no agreement can be reached after "sufficient good-faith efforts" to negotiate a contract, according to the National Labor Relations Act.
If the union disagrees an impasse has been reached, it can file a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board for review.
The complaints were filed Thursday, a search of the board's records revealed.
The administration's offer also guaranteed full health care benefits for employees and their families in the first two years of the contract. During the remaining three years, administrators could require employees to pay a portion of their premiums.
The complaints also note the termination of two members of the faculty's union, which the state education association claims was done by the administration because of their "union activities."
"The termination of two long-term outstanding faculty members that are respected by everyone on campus after the college's implementation of terms of employment was just plain wrong and it could be determined that the determinations were illegal," LCEA vice-president Lawrence Pugliese said in a statement.
In a statement, the college said while they do not publicly comment on specific employee's work status, they do not even know "which individuals the union's (news) release supposedly refers."
"We can, however, affirmatively state that the only faculty who will not be returning next year are a few who, despite numerous opportunities, failed to meet the minimum standards for tenure or whose applications for tenure were rejected by their peers and then the College in the normal course," the college said.
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