The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, September 13, 1983 - Pagel
City teachers walk out
By BARBARA MISLE ,
Frustrated Ann Arbor public school
teachers stormed out of negotiations
with school board officials early Mon-
day morning throwing the eight-day-old
strike into a deadlock.
With the 'start of school for 14,000
students delayed until at least Wed-
nesday, teachers and school board of-
ficials have been haggling over wages
and insurance coverage - the issue
which sparked the walkout.
BOARD members want teachers to
give up their current insurance policy
in favor of using a less expensive plan
which teachers adamantly oppose. In a
compromise move Sunday night which
the board rejected, teachers proposed a
plan which they said would save about
$285,000.
Under the plan, teachers would ex-
pand their current insurance plan
through the Michigan Educational
Special Services Administration (MR-
SSA).
Currently the teachers' total insuran-
ce plan includes coverage by a few
-HAPPENINGS-
Films
Ann Arbor Film Coop - Z, 7 p.m., State of Siege, 9:20 p.m., Aud. A, Angell.
Cinema Guild - The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, 7:20 p.m., Our Hospitality,
8:20 p.m., Dick Tracy in The Spider Strikes and The Bridge of Terror, 6:30
p.m., Lorch.
Performance
Fairlane - lunch & concert, "Dancers Pointe Consort, Noon, Sission Rm.,
4901 Evergreen Rd., Dearborn.
Speakers
Chemistry - Raoul Kopelman, "Fractal Reaction Dynamics The Key to
Heterogeneous Kinetics?" 4 p.m., 1300 Chem.
Computing Center - chalk talk, "MTS Command Language," CC Con-
sulting Staff, 12:10 p.m., NUBS.
Near Eastern & North African Studies - Fathi Osman, "the Resurgence
of Islam," 4 p.m., MLB Aud. 4; brown bag, "the Dilemma of Islamic
Ideology," noon, Rm. 200, Lane Hall.
Psychbbiology - Alfred C. Raphelson, Wilbert J. McKeachie, Keith
Smith, "History of Psychology at The University of Michigan," 12:30 p.m.,
1057, MHRI.
Cont. Medical Education; Postgrad. Med; etc. - "Fall Family Practice
Review: Clinical Update," The Towsley Ctr., 763-1400.
William Cook Lecture on American Institutions - Peter Berger, "from
Religious to MoralPluralism," 4 p.m., MLB Lec. Rm. 1.
Rudolf Steiner Institute - E. Katz, "the Bodily Nature of Man as Outlined
by Spiritual Science," 6p.m., 1923 Geddes.
Center for Russian and E. Eur. Studies - Dr. Renata Siemenska, "Con-
temporary Polish Affairs," 4:10 p.m., E. Lec. Hall, 3rd floor, Rackham.
Center for Chinese Studies - Robert Dernberger, "Introducing the Center
for Chinese Studies," noon, Lane Hall Commons Room.
Meetings
Ann Arbor Go Club --7 p.m., 1433 Mason.
His House Christian Fellowship - 7:30 p.m., 925 E. Ann St.
CEW - Job Hunt Club drop-in support group, noon, 2nd floor of Conerica
Bank at 350 S. Thayer St.
Amnesty Int'l -7 p.m., Group 61, Union.
Project Community - mass meeting for legal/law-related programs, 7
p.m., 13 Angell Hall.
NOW - 7:30 p.m., Unitarian Church, 1917 Washtenaw Ave.
Miscellaneous
Rackham East Gallery - exhibit, "Edwin A. Harleston: Painter of an
Era, 1882-1931," noon to 8p.m., East Gallery.
McAuley Health Center - Smoke Stoppers session, 7 p.m., Education Cen-
ter, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital.
Washtenaw County Women's Council of Realtors - charity luncheon and
fashion show, "Dress for Success," 11:30 a.m., Weber's Inn ballroom.
Musical Society - choral union auditions, 665-3717..
To -submit items for the Happenings Column, send them in care of
Happenings, The Michigan Daily, 420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, MI. 48109.
other companies for areas such as den-
tal costs or long-term disability, but
under the proposal all areas would be
transferred to MESSA.
BOARD MEMBERS rejected the
proposal because they said it wasn't
certain $285,000 could actually be saved
because teachers might not be willing
to change policies, said Robert
Moseley, assistant school superinten-
dent. Moseley also said the proposal
was unacceptable because the savings
would only be for one year.
A $285,000 savings is unrealistic,
Moseley said, adding that a MESSA
representative prepared the estimate
and that the uncertainty makes it "too
iffy to commit it to taxpayers."
"I don't think the board will ever say
they aren't interested in saving
$285,000. But we aren't going to take a
one-year savings and say we've got a
deal."
BUT TEACHERS SAID rejecting the
policy was unreasonable and that board,
officials are determined to get rid of
MESSA because the company refuses to
disclose lists of teachers' insurance
claims, said Larry Merx, spokesman
for the Ann Arbor Education
Association, the teachers' union.
"(The board) isn't after saving
money or cutting health care costs.
They are after MESSA because MESSA
won't give out information on which
teachers are seeing what doctor," said
Merx.
Merx said the board wants such in-
formation for what teachers have dub-
bed the "hit list." Teachers who have
received poor evaluations from their
principals are considered to be on a "hit
list" and are required to participate in
a teachers improvement program,
n talks
Merx said.
UNION OFFICIALS SAY the criteria
used for evaluating teachers is ar-
bitrary and information from insurance
companies which could reveal, for
example, that a teacher was under
psychiatric care, would be a violation of
privacy.
But board officials say such charges
are unfounded and skirting the issues
under negotiation. "We aren't in-
terested in what teachers went to what
doctor for what services. That's ab-
solutely incorrect. There is no such
thing as a 'hit list,"' Moseley said.
"THE TEACHER improvement
program has nothing to do with
negotiations at all," he said, adding
that since the program began two-and-
a-half years ago, no teacher has ever
been dismissed.
Insurance companies nationwide
release "experience information," or
lists of teachers' claims, to be used as a
track record for the firm, but MESSA
refuses to provide such lists.
Releasing that information would not
violate teachers' privacy because there
is no way to link the claims to a
teacher's name, because companies
print them on two separate lists,
Moseley said.
TEACHERS ARE STILL asking for a
4 percent salary increase while the
-board is only offering a 2.5 percent hike.
Other issues yet to be negotiated are
disagreement over the number of con-
ference days for elementary school
teachers, and the criteria considered
when teachers are laid off.
Teachers have been meeting with
board officials every day since the
strike began and talks are expected to
resume this afternoon.
i ,*
AP Photo
Happy Birthday, Chicago
Chicago Mayor Harold Washington leads the crowd in singing "Happy Bir-
thday" yesterday to honor the city's 150th anniversary celebration.
it
Man killed on Main St.
Ess _
masmeLn
From Staff Reports
William Lackley, a 35-year-old Yp-
silanti man died at University Hospital
~aiIa
Classifieds
get
results!
last night after lying down in the street
and'being run over by a car, police said.
Ann Arbor Police Lieut. Duane Web-
ber said the man was hit by a car at
about 9:15 p.m. after he laid down in the
street at the corner of Main and Hill.
"The car did not stop," Webber said.
"We do not even know if the person who
ran over him knew he had run over
him."
Webber said the man died at about 11
p.m.
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Sept. 13.
TUESDAY
7:00 p. m.
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Michigan Union
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