Settlement to education strike an elusive goal

By Alice Keesing and Jennifer Hiller
Advertiser Education Writers

Negotiators for the state and teachers union reopened the lines of communication yesterday, but there is no immediate end in sight for the strike that is dragging into its seventh day.

Striking public school teachers filled about a third of the state House gallery yesterday to be present for bills relating to education and to lobby lawmakers. Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser

As negotiators try to get talks back on track, the school on the private island of Ni'ihau will today become the first public school to reopen. The school's two teachers will hold classes today for 39 students. Schools will remain closed today for the other 183,000 students in the state.

After days of stand-off, negotiators said yesterday they agreed on one thing: They want to settle.

"I think we're trying to be encouraging both to the general public and to people on the line and everyone else affected that we are working on it," said the state's chief negotiator, Davis Yogi, after yesterday's two-hour meeting. "The good thing about informal discussions is you're no longer posturing per se; you're problem-solving. And because our goal is to reach settlement, the only way to get there is through open conversations."

But with the two sides reported to be $100 million apart, money was not discussed yesterday, Yogi said.

Retroactive pay remains a big issue for the union. It wants any settlement to include raises from the time the contract expired in January 1999. The state has offered money only for the final two years of the four-year contract — fiscal years 2002 and 2003.

The state also wants to tie any raises to professional development, a concept the union says it supports.

"We do have a little work to do and that's not rhetoric," said Hawai'i State Teachers Association executive director Joan Husted. "There were some things that came out of the discussion that caused both parties to go back and get out their thinking caps, and then at the appropriate time we would get back together again."

There were no plans to meet today, but both sides are "on call."

Meanwhile, while striking university faculty have repeatedly requested a meeting, Yogi said a new offer may not be ready for a few days.

"What it's going to take is for us to put together a total proposal that we can present to the union for their consideration," Yogi said. "When it's appropriate, we'll meet."

A pay increase for lecturers, the lowest paid of all university faculty, and the workload at the community colleges are among the issues being discussed.

Sharon Rota of Kapi'olani Community College gets some chiropractic care from Dr. Kimo Pestana yesterday. Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser

Participation in the university strike has remained strong on all campuses, with little change in the number of classes taught or faculty members crossing the picket line.

Yesterday, 95 percent of the community college faculty, 92 percent of UH-Hilo faculty, 93 percent of UH-West O'ahu and 84 percent of UH faculty members honored the picket line.

If the strike continues, administration announcement on possible tuition refunds, changes in the semester schedule, final exams and the start of summer school will not be made until early next week.

The HSTA also continues to report a strong turnout on the picket lines, with 134 — or 1 percent — of teachers crossing the line yesterday. The department estimated that 148 teachers reported to work.

Honolulu police issued the first citation to a picket Monday at an entrance to the University of Hawaii-Manoa campus. The picket stood in front of a car and refused to move and was cited for disobeying a police officer, said to Assistant Chief Stephen Watarai.

Since the strike began last Thursday, police have issued seven citations, six of them at University of Hawai'i campuses. There have been no arrests and no reports of injuries on the picket lines.

DOE spokesman Greg Knudsen said picket lines around the state are generally calm. The department is receiving a steady stream of calls from the public.

"We do sense some frustration from people," Knudsen said. "It definitely is creating a hardship on some people who just have limited options on how to provide childcare, on how to provide the intensity of services to special needs students who are out of school. It shouldn't be mistaken that everyone is just kind of cruising through this."

Advertiser staff writer Curtis Lum contributed to this report.