At a time when officers of the Mendocino County Federation of School Employees, (AFT Local 4345) bargaining team conceded to furlough days, a freeze in pay, and increased health care premium costs for classified and certificated members at the bargaining table, management of the Mendocino County Office have had their calendar years increased. About 15 union members and staff came to Monday's board of trustees meeting looking for answers which they said were not available to the negotiations team and not disclosed until Sept. 2.

While sketchy on the surface, Paul Tichinin, MCOE superintendent, said that the increase is due to a lack of personnel; some were laid off and others retired or left for personal reasons. So those remaining needed more time to get jobs done. He said he will go back and verify individual cases and get back to the union.

According to union members getting that simple answer earlier was difficult.

Union steward Michael Nemeth said that some of the frustrations came out of the negotiations board meeting earlier this year when the union asked about additional days given to management. "If there were a decrease in management, that should have been laid out at the negotiation table." Before the union settled on a tentative agreement to present to our members for ratification, they asked, more than once, about "rumors" of increased calendar years for management employees, he said, adding that the office repeatedly denied that any manager had otten an increase in calendar days. "So we walked out very frustrated feeling like we were being betrayed.

Nemeth said that if MCOE knew they were going to lose managers and increase the days of others, they should have let the union know. The union plans on reviewing Monday's meeting and decide whether or not they will go back to the negotiating table because of this.

Before Monday's meeting, union president Kathy Wylie said union leadership initiated steps to file an unfair bargaining administrative action with the Public Employment Relations Board. "This could ultimately result in MCOE being forced to reopen negotiations and bargain honestly and in good-faith over the issues of compensation," Wylie said.

Tichinin said that if the union wants to go back to the table that he would be "overjoyed." "If union feels they want to go and look back at this -- a straight salary reduction -- I would entertain that," he said.