Vermont State Colleges head to mediation with union for 262 teachers

The administration of the Vermont State Colleges system is heading into mediation with the union that represents 262 full-time faculty members.

Lisa Olson, president of the colleges' Faculty Federation and a sociology professor at Castleton State College, says the contract expired in August, and negotiations through December have broken down.

Olson said the administration did not make counteroffers after hearing proposals from the faculty. She says the proposals from faculty touched on salaries, teacher evaluations and contract language about layoffs.

The colleges' chief financial officer, Thomas Robbins, tells the Barre Times Argus (http://bit.ly/1yfEUyk ) he disagreed with the union's characterization of the status of the negotiations, but he declined to discuss the details of the bargaining.

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Information from: The Times Argus, http://www.timesargus.com/