Possible Teacher Strike Looms at Community College of Phila. As Talks Continue
By Mike DeNardo
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Community College of Philadelphia has put what it calls its "final" contract offer on the table for its instructors.
CCP president Stephen Curtis says the school's final offer to 1,600 faculty and staff includes pay raises in four out of five years, and what he called "modest" increases in health care co-pays and the establishment of a medical deductible.
"The reduced government funding, the rising cost of health care... at some point there simply is a limit in terms of the money that we will have available to pay for a new contract," he says.
The two sides have been negotiating for more than a year. Their five-year contract expired last August.
Steve Jones, co-president of the Faculty and Staff Federation of CCP, says more talks are set for Monday and Tuesday.
"We've actually offered them concessions on health care that we were reluctant to do, but we think are very reasonable," he tells KYW Newsradio.
Jones says the union has voted in favor of a strike authorization, but for now he's focused on reaching an agreement.
The last faculty strike at CCP was a 12-day walkout in 2007.
