Ypsilanti teachers union calls for mediator in talks with district

She said it quickly became apparent that the two sides were “caught up on little things” and mediation would be the best option.

“We are obviously way far apart on what we can agree on, so we hope with mediation we can come up with something that is palatable for both sides,” she said.

The district had originally asked the teachers to take a 3-percent pay cut, but the union countered with a three-year buyout plan it says would save the district more money.

Powers said a Michigan Education Association financial expert estimated the union’s plan would save the district roughly $1 million initially. In the plan, teachers with more experience and higher salaries would take buyouts over a three-year period, preventing pay cuts for those earning less money.

Ray Davis, a lawyer for the Thrun law firm who is the district’s chief negotiator, declined to comment on the negotiation’s specifics, but said the district is “very open” to the mediation process. He says it's the best route to go if it makes the teachers comfortable in the negotiating process.

“We want to act as problem solvers and we want them to be in that mode, too,” he said. “If they are going to be in that mode in mediation, then we're pleased that’s how it’s being done.”

The call for mediation came one day before the district lays out a plan aimed at trimming $6.8 million from the its budget by the start of the next school year.

Further complicating the process are union elections scheduled for mid-April, which Powers says preclude negotiating for next year’s contracts because new representatives could be at the table.

The district and union are also waiting to hear on decisions on several plans at the state level that affect teachers’ health care and retirement benefits.

“These are such challenging times, so it’s hard to read the indicators as far as where things are going to be in six months,” Davis said. “I think both parties take that into account.”