Collective bargaining, support staff at a halt

by Krystal Paco

Guam - Collective bargaining agreement negotiations are still at a standstill between the Guam Education Board and the Guam Federation of Teachers but GEB member Barry Mead is growing concerned about the support staff contract, which expired in August 2009.

Mead worries that members are paying for a non-existent contract, saying, "There was a contract that was presented to the board that had a lot of the working conditions and a lot of the stipulations were in addendum, which means they were after their signature which questions whether or not they're enforceable, not only for the support staff themselves or the department. So my feeling was that we need to redo that and put them inside the contract before the signature lines, so everybody knows what it is. So currently there is no contract," he said.

Until the issue is settled, employees will continue to be covered by the Civil Service Commission and the rules and regulations of the government.