West Middlesex board to weigh fact-finder's report on contract

WEST MIDDLESEX, Pa. -- The West Middlesex Area School Board will meet June 10 to consider the terms of a state-appointed fact-finder's recommendation for a contract settlement with its teachers.
Both the board and the teachers received the report Tuesday. No terms were released.
Thomas Hubert, board president, said board members are reviewing it individually and will meet in a public session at 7:30 p.m. June 10 to discuss it and take a vote.
John Harper, president of the 78-member teachers union, said a review and vote by teachers hasn't been scheduled.
He said he must meet with his negotiating committee to review the terms before presenting the report to the membership.
Each side has 10 days from the presentation of the report to vote to accept or reject it.
If one or both sides turn it down, the state releases the details of the recommendation.
If both accept it, they return to the bargaining table to work out the final details.
The two sides have been trying to negotiate a new pact since January 2003, and the teachers have worked the entire school year under an extension of their old agreement.