WASHINGTON, October 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) welcomed representatives from the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) and the Overseas Federation of Teachers (OFT). Washington, D.C Headquarters to congratulate the parties on a temporary employment contract yesterday. It is the first contractual successor agreement between the parties in 28 years.
It is the first contractual successor agreement between the parties in 28 years.
Representatives from both DoDEA and OFT were in attendance and were also joined online by others in their respective organizations, including the President of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). Randy Weingarten and DoDEA Director Thomas Brady. AFT is the parent organization of OFT.
“We would like to extend our congratulations to the parties on this momentous occasion,” FMCS Acting Director Gregory Goldstein said. “Although FMCS cannot comment on the content of their specific negotiations, FMCS was honored to assist the parties in resolving their negotiations and successfully completing their collective agreement.”
The Europe South School District contract is the culmination of a long series of negotiations between the two parties. The district includes 16 DoDEA schools in Bahrain, Italy, Spainand Turkeyand trains over 5,600 students with nearly 600 teachers who make up the OFT negotiation unit.
FMCS Commissioner Kevin Wagner was invited by the parties in 2020 to help develop ground rules that were adopted in mid-2021 and he was subsequently invited to assist in mediating the parties’ collective bargaining process, which ultimately led to the mutually acceptable solution that they scored yesterday.
“These parties faced difficult and divisive issues,” Wagner said. “Through their determination, dedication, professionalism and commitment to the process, they were able to overcome significant challenges and obstacles to find their way to a contract.”
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