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April 23, 1999
For more information, contact
Barb Brady, WEAC Press Secretary
800-362-8034, extension 239
A vote by part-time Waukesha County Technical College faculty to not affiliate with the Waukesha County Technical Educators Association is disappointing, but not the end of the road, according to the education group.
WCTEA President Ellen Mei announced today that faculty who teach part-time at WCTC, mostly in the evenings and on weekends, chose not to join the union that represents WCTC’s full-time and daytime part-time faculty at this time.
“Naturally, we are disappointed that a majority of those voting chose not to join us now. We obviously have more work to do with our part-time colleagues. We will continue to talk with them, discuss issues, and work toward bringing all faculty together in the WCTEA,” Mei said. “We hope to come back and have a successful election next year. This is not the end of the process.”
Part-time faculty's first opportunity to vote for representation did not come easily. The employer attempted to block the part-time faculty from organizing for more than a year through several legal maneuvers, and sent out a letter urging a 'no' vote.
“All of these actions had a negative impact,” said Mei. “However, we have succeeded in getting rulings on these issues so that now both we and the employer know where we stand for next time.”
Mei indicated that the union is investigating and may take action on employer conduct immediately preceeding and during the election that may have influenced a fair election.
The vote was 60% against and 40% in favor of representation by the WCTEA.
