Victory in
Irvington!
Librera ends contract
stalemate by agreeing to "Unfreeze the Funds"
NJEA Website • Nov., 2004
Itís finally over. The Irvington Education
Association (IEA) has won its fight to preserve collective
bargaining.
On Nov. 15, State Education Commissioner Dr. William L.
Librera finally agreed to release the funds for the
IEAís new contract, paving the way for long overdue
raises for its 700 teacher-members.
For months, Librera had blocked the ratified IEA
contract in an unprecedented threat to everyoneís
bargaining rights, citing a litany of reasons. In the
end, none of them mattered.
Led by IEA President Dr. Madeline Edwards and her two
action team chairs, Debbie Ellis and Lenny Bajor, the IEA
mobilized its members for the fight, and they responded
magnificently. They came to Trenton to lobby legislators on
Oct. 25 and picketed Libreraís office. NJEA members
from other locals, recognizing the importance of the
struggle, joined the IEA in many of its actions.
The IEA waged a massive organizing campaign against the
DOE. Hundreds of members wrote letters to legislators,
picketed DOE offices in Montclair, East Orange and Trenton,
and eventually confronted Librera at the NJEA Convention on
Nov. 4, where he agreed to come to Irvington to resolve the
crisis.
On Nov. 10, Librera traveled to Irvington to meet with
the IEA, NJEA, and the representatives of the Irvington
Board of Education. As a result, the Board agreed to supply
Librera with updated employment and salary data to pave the
way for a resolution. That information was delivered on Nov.
12, and on Nov. 15, Librera announced the release of the
funds.
"The commitment and dedication of the IEA was
phenomenal," said NJEA President Edie Fulton. "They came
together, they organized, they lobbied, and they took to the
streets to apply pressure to win this fight, and they won.
Itís an enormous victory for all NJEA members."
NJEA staffers from the UniServ, Government Relations,
Research, and Communications divisions worked closely with
the IEA every step of the way. On Oct. 5, NJEA filed suit
against the DOE for violating state law (NJSA 18A: 7F-6)
that specifically says the Commissioner may not "restrict,
limit, interfere with, participate, or be directly involved
in collective negotiations."
On Nov. 9, NJEA attorneys gave oral arguments before
Judge Neil H. Shuster in Mercer County Superior Court, but
he deferred a ruling pending the outcome of the Nov. 10
meeting in Irvington.
It was Edwardsí Nov. 4 confrontation with Librera
in Atlantic City that broke the deadlock. Standing before a
throng of IEA and other NJEA members at the annual "Meet the
Commissioner" session and wearing a picket sign, Edwards
urged Librera to "Unfreeze the Funds," in the words of the
IEAís slogan during the struggle.
"We finally have economic justice in Irvington," Edwards
said. "I salute my members for taking this fight to the
highest levels and prevailing. We were united all the way,
and winning was the only acceptable outcome."
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