Present: Ash, Banach, Barker, Brandt, Brewer, Brigham, Danai, Domier, Gross, Levine, McDermott, McGinty, Misra, Paynter,Phillips, Phillis, Schmalzer, Smethurst

Staff: Gallagher, Reardon, Wulkan                

Absent: Adams (on leave), Gubrium, Luce

1.         Approval of Minutes of January 20, 2009

            Approved unanimously

2.         Possible Reopening of Contract and Modification of Contract Terms

            We have been asked by the university administration to reopen the contract and negotiate some concessions.  To do so would require a recommendation by the MSP Board and a vote of the membership, in conjunction with a similar process by FSU.

            Randy explained that Roy Milbury, chief negotiator for the University, said that accepting this proposal would not prevent layoffs, that it is not precipitated by an immediate financial crisis, and that it could be inferred that it is related to political challenges faced by the Patrick administration.  He was instructed by Paul Reville, the Secretary of Education, to seek specific concessions from all the UMass unions.  They are comparable to what was offered to other state worker unions, some of which have refused to open their contracts and some of which have negotiated modifications. 

Randy then explained the proposal from the administration and the expectation that absent some agreement our contract would most likely not get funded.  The Board discussed the proposal at some length and then considered a motion to reject the administration’s offer.  The motion carried 17-0.

3.         Executive Session

            A motion was made for the Board to go into executive session to consider alternatives.  This motion carried 17-0.  At the end of the executive session, a motion was made to leave executive session.   This motion carried 17-0.

4.         Continuing Discussions

            A motion was made asking the MSP officers to continue to engage in discussions with the administration about alternatives.  This motion carried 17-0.

5.         Membership Meeting

            The Board decided that MSP would hold a Membership Meeting to discuss these issues on February 11 at 12 Noon.  A notice that includes the administration’s offer would be sent to all members as soon as possible.