Play be the Dean of WSU/Univ of Michigan for a Day

[belleislerunner]

So "right to work" was passed in December. However, the law doesn't take effect until late March. You negotiate a contract with a union in good faith that lasts longer than the typical contract [[e.g. five to eight years). The day before you are to meet to ratify the contract [[i.e. sign it) a subcommittee in Lansing states if you ratify the contract you will lose 15% of your appropriations. Given that you are signing a legally binding contract that puts limits on pay reductions/staffing levels - you have three options.

You don't have weeks to decide [[or time to hire consultants) - you must decide by tomorrow what to do.

Are you ready to be a leader? 60,000 Michigan college kids are directly impacted by your choice.

1) Sign the contract with the union and face the potential of losing 15% of state appropriations. Most typically, that will come from a 15% increase in tuition, affecting 60,000 students [[30K at each Michigan and WSU) and their families.

2) Not sign the contract with the union. Union goes on strike. Forced to accept binding arbitation however judge may lead.

3) Sign the contract and hope Lansing is just playing a "bluff" game that even if they signed it, cooler heads would previal in that Snyder would veto it.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...text|FRONTPAGE

[Eber Brock Ward]

Sort of off-topic, but there has to be a better way to negotiate cop, teacher, professor, etc. contracts than the way we do it now. In many cases, you have, respectively, a senior cop type, educator, or academic serving as the lead negotiator for the organization.

Often that negotiator doesn't press hard enough for the best deal possible for the organization because he or she is a member of the brotherhood with whom they are negotiating, even if just in spirit.

I wonder if the best way to do it wouldn't be to bring in some sort of external negotiator that serves at the pleasure of the Board or other governing body. It might actually "save" the organization money because its saves more over the life of the contract than it pays out in fees to the negotiation consultant.