Teachers pact long overdue

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Mar 09, 2013

~~<p>Only five months after walking away from federal mediation talks to reach a new labor contract, the Hawaii State Teachers Association has decided to renew the effort. This time, the extra attempt must be taken seriously — by all sides — to end what has been a vexingly prolonged stalemate.</p>
<p>Hawaii's collective bargaining law requires that a statutory impasse is declared by Feb. 1 of a year in which an existing contract is set to expire. At that point, the law allows the parties to enter into mediation, subject to the Hawaii Labor Relations Board, which approved the HSTA request earlier this week.</p>
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Only five months after walking away from federal mediation talks to reach a new labor contract, the Hawaii State Teachers Association has decided to renew the effort. This time, the extra attempt must be taken seriously — by all sides — to end what has been a vexingly prolonged stalemate.

Hawaii's collective bargaining law requires that a statutory impasse is declared by Feb. 1 of a year in which an existing contract is set to expire. At that point, the law allows the parties to enter into mediation, subject to the Hawaii Labor Relations Board, which approved the HSTA request earlier this week. Login for more...