February 25, 2003
Tax Would 'Buy Back' School Days
Discussions and negotiations between the City of Portland and Multnomah County are beginning to generate proposals:
City of Portland officials said Monday that they plan to impose a temporary business tax to buy back two weeks of school in Portland Public Schools this spring, if the district and its teachers can avert a strike.
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Combined with the teachers union offer this weekend to have teachers work two weeks without pay, the city's proposals would save 20 of the 24 days the district plans to cut. Under the city proposal, the City Council would adopt a four-year business license fee surcharge by mid-March.
Meanwhile, the dispute between Portland's school district and teachers continues:
Gripes from both sides School board members gripe about what they see as union distortions and a union leadership that they say doesn't represent the rank and file. Union leaders lambaste the district's management and shoot arrows at Steve Goldschmidt, a human resources director who they say played a union-busting role in Eugene.
Outside personal animosity, the key sticking points heading into the strike vote are district demands for caps on teacher health care premiums and for contract language changes, particularly the right to transfer teachers involuntarily among schools.
Teachers are scheduled to vote tonight on whether to strike. Talks are continuing throughout the day in an attempt to turn the strike vote into a contract vote. If a strike is called, it could not begin until March 10 at the earliest.
Portland teachers have never gone on strike.