No contract yet at CMU, strike ban expires Wednesday

MT. PLEASANT, Mich. — A judge's ruling prohibiting a strike by faculty at Central Michigan University expires on Wednesday, with no agreement yet between university administration and the faculty union on a new contract, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The union would not say last week whether it will go on strike again, as it did for one day at the beginning of the school year before a judge ordered professors back to work, the Free Press reported.

Both the administration and the union have rejected each other's final offer, according to the Free Press. The university's final offer was a three-year contract with no raise the first year, a 2.25 percent raise the second year and a 2.5 percent raise the third year, while the union has offered a one-year pay freeze during which time the sides would continue to negotiate a contract for future years, the Free Press reported.

A state fact-finder issued a report earlier this month that mostly favored the administration's offer, but those recommendations are not binding, the Free Press reported.

SOURCE:

Detroit Free Press, “Central Michigan faculty could strike next week over contract impasse,” Nov. 24, 2011

FURTHER READING:

Mackinac Center for Public Policy, “CMU Strike: Standing Firm is Not Bad Faith,” Aug. 22, 2011