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Teacher negotiations continue at South Western City Schools
GROVE CITY, Ohio (WCMH) — One of Ohio's largest school districts is in the middle of teacher contract negotiations with the collective bargaining agreement between the district and the union expiring June 30.
South Western City Schools (SWCS) and the South Western Education Association (SWEA) both hope to reach an agreement soon. Since there was no agreement met by a June 1 deadline, mediation will start on June 23.
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There is some uncertainty with the mediation process which is different this year. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) made cuts to the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, which typically appoints a mediator to help schools and unions in negotiations.
'It has caused a lot of these mediators to be put on administrative leave, so we had to go find a private mediator,' union spokesperson Emmalee Harding said. 'SWEA's bargaining team and SWEA's membership has agreed with district administration to split the cost of that.'
Harding called the private mediator a band-aid rather than a permanent fix. She said the fear is that it may not be sustainable if an agreement is not reached soon.
'I don't have a crystal ball,' she said. 'I wish I did; that could tell us what could happen on the 23 or by June 30. We're going to keep fighting.'
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Negotiations happen behind closed doors, so it's not known why the district and SWEA haven't reached an agreement. This uncertainty is frustrating for some parents.
'I don't know much about like what's going on or what's happening,' South Western parent Kyra Paul said. 'I do know the process can be quite lengthy and it has been in the past.'
Paul said she wishes she had more information, but wants teachers and staff to fight for what they need to educate their students and all South Western students.
'They're educating our future,' Paul said. 'I mean, they truly, truly are. So, to keep our highly skilled, highly qualified, engaged teachers, they need to be compensated and treated with the respect they deserve.'
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A school district spokesperson sent a statement that said, in part, 'SWCS understands there is a natural curiosity as to the latest developments in regards to each party's pursuit of an agreement. With that in mind, such negotiations require a level of confidentiality to ensure fairness and protect the integrity of the discussions between parties for all stakeholders involved.'
The current collective bargaining agreement between the district and the union expires June 30. If an agreement is not met by that date, then bargaining sessions will continue with the hope that it is resolved before the start of the school year.
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