MEMORANDUM

TO: All Faculty Members and Coaches

FROM: Patricia I. Heilman
President

DATE: June 26, 2007

RE: Thomas Krapsho’s Letter Dated June 22, 2007
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By now, I am sure you have received the menacing letter from Mr. Thomas M. Krapsho of the Chancellor’s Office. Mr. Krapsho’s scare tactics are transparent, outrageous and illegal. His letter contains quite a few misrepresentations and outright threats which, State APSCUF believes, constitute unfair labor practices upon which we plan to take action. APSCUF’s Legal Counsel has filed an unfair labor practice charge based on this letter which could have significant implications for contract negotiations and our strike plans.

APSCUF believes that the following positions will be upheld by the labor board and the courts:

1. Faculty on 26 pays for the 9-month academic year should continue to be paid whether or not there is a strike. This is pay for work that they have already performed.

2. Faculty who have worked the 9-month academic year and plan to return in the fall (this means all tenured and tenure track faculty and some temporary full-time faculty) have earned their fringe benefit coverage, including their health care benefits, for the entire summer. They should continue to receive those benefits whether or not they go on strike.

3. Only faculty who actually have summer assignments – those who are working summer school and 12-month faculty – should lose any summer pay, and then only for the actual number of days that they are on strike. We believe that Mr. Krapsho’s threat to withhold all summer school pay, even for days already worked, is clearly illegal. This is one of the subjects addressed in our unfair practice charge.

Some of Mr. Krapsho’s threats appear to illustrate PASSHE’s desperation. For example, point #8 of his letter states, “No medical or dependent care account reimbursements for expenses incurred by a striking faculty member will be made through the flexible spending account program.” Has Mr. Krapsho forgotten that the money deposited into those accounts is, in fact, the faculty members’ and coaches’ money and not the PASSHE’s? I would like to know why Mr. Krapsho believes that money deposited into what is essentially a savings account would not be available to the depositors in the event of a strike. This statement simply makes no sense and

was clearly placed in the document to interfere with and elicit fear of striking among our bargaining unit members.

The fact that Mr. Krapsho felt it was necessary to issue this kind of letter is a good indicator of the pressure and anxiety our collective activity is causing the Chancellor’s Office. As the Chancellor’s Office begins to show its true colors, now, more than ever, it is time to stand up to Mr. Krapsho’s bullying tactics and demonstrate our solidarity, our support of the Faculty and Coaches Negotiation Teams and our commitment to a fair contract.