Approval of negotiating team delayed

by Jolene Toves

Guam - During last night's Guam Education Board meeting Department of Education superintendent Jon Fernandez was hoping to have a negotiating team approved to start dialogue with the Guam Federation of Teachers. The Guam Education Board during their meeting last month approved a motion to proceed to enter into collective bargaining negotiations with the union.

"So I presented them with my recommendations for their consideration and so the recommendation is I want to lead the negotiations with the teachers union and I asked five people to join me in that effort," he said.

Three of the five individuals are principals from the elementary middle and high school levels as well as two deputies from the Central Offices. Fernandez asked the board to approve the recommendations in hopes of getting started with negotiations. The GEB did ask GFT for their list of union repreesentatives but that was not made available.