if there was any hope the Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) filed by the Hamilton Southeastern Education Association (HSEA) would be settled soon, there appears to be little hope of that, at least for now.  HSEA President Abby Taylor alleges in the ULP filing Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) Schools Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Brian Murphy created a “hostile work environment.”

HSE Schools originally faced a deadline of July 2nd to respond to the teacher’s union ULP filing, but was granted an extension to July 19.  On July 23rd, HSE & HSEA attorneys and officials are scheduled to meet with the state education employment relations board to schedule a hearing date on the dispute.

HSEA President Taylor spoke to teachers gathered near the school administration building prior to the 6pm Wednesday board session, addressing comments by Superintendent Patrick Mapes at the last board meeting tying test scores with teacher job satisfaction.  “We know that our students are  more than a test score,” Taylor said.

Taylor said she would love to reveal e-mail and voice messages, but will wait until ISTA attorneys say it can be revealed without damaging their ULP legal case.  She describes those messages to teachers as “appalling.”

Taylor then spoke before the board during public comment, one of three speakers supporting teachers.  Taylor pointed to an agenda item approving additional legal expenses, which Taylor attributed to dealing with the ULP filed by HSEA.  She accused HSE Schools of not working collaboratively to solve any differences between the parties.  According to Taylor, this is not the fiscal responsibility the board majority campaigned on during the 2022 school board election.

No HSE School officials commented on the ULP during Wednesday’s board session.