A mediator from the Washington State Public Employee Relations commission has been assigned to Kent to try to facilitate negotiations between the Kent School District and the Kent Education Association.
Guy Coss, who has worked previously on several K-12 contract disputes, including last year’s Bellevue School District strike, will begin by contacting both sides of the dispute.
The mediator comes following a joint request from both sides after the district on Friday declared an impasse in negotiations. The two sides have met at least 11 times during contract negotiations, but have so far been unable to reach an agreement.
The first day of school is scheduled for Aug. 31, but with no contract in place and a KEA-member meeting containing a potential strike vote set for Aug. 26, both sides are preparing for a delay in the start of the school year.
Mediation begins 10 a.m. Wednesday.
According to Martha Nicoloff, a field services manager with PERC, the mediator’s role is to assist both parties in finding common ground, and ultimately a contract they can live with.
“The hoped-for result is they come to an agreement and can put a contract together,” Nicoloff said.
The mediator, however, does not have the authority to compel either side to reach an agreement or accept any item, but the hope is that a fresh set of eyes may be able to clarify each side’s position for the other and offer suggestions to move negotiations along.
“We are always the impartial third party,” Nicoloff said. “When we are mediators, we are not directing anybody to do anything.
“What they have is the power of their experience as a mediator,” she added.
Nicoloff said PERC employs 17 full-time mediator/adjudicators with jurisdiction over virtually all public employees in the state, including those in the school system.
Nicoloff said there is no usual timeframe for these discussions, but that a mediator will stay on hand until a settlement is reached.
“By and large, the mediator will be working through until resolution,” Nicoloff said.
For more information on the negotiations and the differences between the two sides, visit www.kentschools.org (KEA site) or www.kent.k12.wa.us (official Kent School District site).
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