Should local teachers union contract negotiations with school boards be held in public?

Should negotiations between local teachers unions and school boards be made public or continue to be hidden in the back room?

Recently we contacted the Battle Ground School Board and asked for copies of the negotiation proposals in the current contract discussions with the Battle Ground Teachers Union. After 10 days we got a simple letter that said:

“Per your public records request dated June 9, 2017, requesting information regarding BGEA negotiations with the school board on their contract, we are providing you with the following response:

The records you requested are protected through RCW 4256.280 “Preliminary drafts, notes, recommendations, and intra-agency memorandums in which opinions are expressed or policies formulated or recommended are exempt under this chapter, except that a specific record is not exempt when publicly cited by an agency in connection with any agency action.””

The Tukwila School Board apparently has decided that open and transparent negotiations are important: http://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/tukwila-school-board-opens-union-contract-negotiations-to-the-public/   

Jami Lund of The Freedom Foundation offers some more background and thoughts at: http://www.freedomfoundation.com/union-contracts 

The cartoon in our header says it all….The taxpayer is missing at the bargaining table…yet…the taxpayer pays the bills. Is this right?

If you think negotiations should be open and transparent we suggest two things:

1. Contact your local school board and tell them to open up
2. Ask school board candidates in this years election what their position is