Teachers Union To File Legal Challenge This Week
The Hawaii State Teachers Association plans to file legal action against the state by the end of this week, the union president said in an email to Civil Beat Thursday morning.
HSTA President Wil Okabe said last Friday that the union plans to challenge Gov. Neil Abercrombie and Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi‘s decision to impose a new contract on teachers without union ratification. The new contract reduces base salaries by 1.5 percent and grants teachers leave without pay on certain non-instructional days. It also increases teachers’ share in the cost of health insurance premiums, from 40 percent to 50 percent.
“Given the unprecedented action, we are in the process of preparing our legal challenge,” Okabe wrote in the email to Civil Beat. “We anticipate filing our action this week. In the meantime, we remain ready and committed to return to negotiations.”
Read our related coverage:
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