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August 29, 2007

Update: A wrapup of teacher contract talks

While teachers took a strike vote and school was canceled in Burrillville, the Tiverton School Committee announced today rejection of its teachers union's healthcare proposal and the sides in East Greenwich continued a marathon negotiation.

The scorecard on teachers' contracts around Rhode Island currently reads: one cancellation, two agreements and five contracts pending.

New Shoreham has reached a contract agreement, and Jamestown has reached a tentative agreement -- which its teachers union and School Committee are expected to separately consider on Sept. 6.

Providence, where school starts Sept. 5, is in negotiations.

The Burrillville School Committee has asked a judge to order teachers to come to work after the teachers' union voted to strike last night, forcing the cancellation of the district's return to classes today. Teachers did not report to their classrooms this morning for what had been the first day of school.

The matter is scheduled for a Superior Court, Providence, hearing this Friday morning at 10:30, Superior Court Associate Justice Netti C. Vogel decided this afternoon after a conference with lawyers from both sides.

In Tiverton, a school district news release this afternoon said the union has proposed a high deductible plan coupled with a health-care savings account. The account allows people to reserve pre-tax dollars for use against medical expenses.

-- projo.com staff writers Michael P. McKinney and Brandie Jefferson, with reports from Journal staff writers Jennifer D. Jordan, Mark Reynolds, Lisa Vernon-Sparks, Gina Macris and Randal Edgar

Denise deMedeiros, the School Committee president, said in the statement that the committee's analysis shows "the suggested savings aren't there and that, in fact, this will increase the cost to the district and therefore to our taxpayers."

But Patrick Crowley, deputy executive director of NEA Rhode Island, said the School Committee has not done the math correctly. He said that the School Committee's own analysis shows there would be a net savings of nearly $24,000.

The committee has asked Schools Supt. William Rearick to ask the union to respond directly to the committee's health-care proposal, which the union has had since May. The committee said it proposed in May that teachers increase premiums on a sliding scale depending on their salaries. They now pay a flat rate, the committee said.

Crowley said deMedeiros and other committee members have not sat down face to face with the union.

The NEA Tiverton teachers union has a membership meeting lsated for Friday at 3:30 p.m. at Green Valley Country Club in Portsmouth, according to Pat Crowley, deputy executive director of NEA Portmsouth.

School in Tiverton began today. The teachers' contract expires Friday.

In East Greenwich, hunkered down in separate rooms, top school administrators and members of the East Greenwich Education Association are in the midst of a mediation session, hoping to come to terms with the three-year-old contract before it expires Friday.

School opens in East Greenwich on Sept. 4.

Both groups have been mediating with their lawyers present since 10 a.m. They were not expected to break until 7:30 p.m., an official said.

The district has been in mediation status since Aug. 10.

Exeter-West Greenwich Regional School District also is in mediation status, with a contact set to expire Friday. School began today.

The sides in Ponaganset (the Foster-Glocester regional district) are in mediation today. School is scheduled to start tomorrow, according to the state Department of Education Web site.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:51 PM | Comment

Man indicted in ex-girlfriend's stabbing death

PROVIDENCE -- Hamlet Lopez, a former teacher's aide, was indicted today on one count of murder in the stabbing death of his former girlfriend.

The indictment alleges that on May 20 Lopez murdered Miledis Hilario, whom the police said was stabbed on the floor of her second-floor apartment at 42 Courtland St. in Providence. Hilario ran her day-care business there.

The police have said her body was found around 10:45 p.m. after one of her teenage daughters, who was at work, asked the police to check on her because of previous threats on her mother's life. The daughter had not been able to reach her by phone.

Arraignment is slated for Sept. 12 in Providence County Superior Court. Lopez is being held at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:36 PM | Comment

Man wielding gun robs Providence store of $195

PROVIDENCE -- A man wielding a handgun robbed $195 from the Academy Farm Mart convenience store, 524 Academy Ave., Mount Pleasant, this morning, the police said.

He got rid of his sunglasses and dark shirt near the store, the police said, and left so hastily that he may have dropped some of his loot. There were three or four witnesses to the getaway, and one said that a woman in a silver station wagon stopped her car and picked up some cash that the robber apparently dropped.

The holdup occurred at about 10:30 a.m. The robber came into the store with a dark shirt draped over his head and part of his face and stole the cash from the drawer of the cash register, clerk Mohama Khadam Aljamea told the police.

He fled west on Whitford Avenue and south on Webb Street, and then jumped into a small red car with Massachusetts license plates at the corner of Webb and Farm streets, according to a witness.

Patrolwoman Rhonda Kessler recovered the shirt and sunglasses in front of 61 Webb.

-- Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:29 PM | Comment

Conn. man admits to string of Northeast robberies

HARTFORD, Conn. -- A Connecticut man is sentenced to more than nine years in prison after admitting in a plea agreement that he robbed 28 banks throughout the Northeast.

Michael Gola, 33, pleaded guilty to 17 counts of bank robbery.

Prosecutors say Gola admitted he robbed 15 banks in Connecticut, as well as banks in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island.

They say Gola netted nearly $55,000 in the robberies during the spring and summer of 2004. He has been ordered to repay the money.

Gola told authorities he was addicted to prescription drugs and wanted the money to help support his disabled daughter.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:26 PM | Comment

Tiverton school panel rejects union's health plan

TIVERTON -- The School Committee announced today it rejected the teachers union's health-care proposal in closed session last night, as the sides attempt to reach a contract deal.

According to a school district news release, the union has proposed a high deductible plan coupled with a health-care savings account. The account allows people to reserve pre-tax dollars for use against medical expenses.

Denise deMedeiros, the School Committee president, said in the statement that the committee's analysis shows "the suggested savings aren't there and that, in fact, this will increase the cost to the district and therefore to our taxpayers."

But Patrick Crowley, deputy executive director of NEA Rhode Island, said the School Committee has not done the math correctly. He said that the School Committee's own analysis shows there would be a net savings of nearly $24,000.

The committee has asked Schools Supt. William Rearick to ask the union to respond directly to the committee's health-care proposal, which the union has had since May. The committee said it proposed in May that teachers increase premiums on a sliding scale depending on their salaries. They now pay a flat rate, the committee said.

Crowley said deMedeiros and other committee members have not sat down face to face with the union.

The NEA Tiverton teachers union has scheduled a membership meeting for Friday at 3:30 p.m. at Green Valley Country Club in Portsmouth, according to Pat Crowley, deputy executive director of NEA Portmsouth. What the meeting will entail is not yet clear.

The union filed last week for compulsory mediation to renogotiate a contract that expires Friday. School in Tiverton began today.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:20 PM | Comment

Amgen uses buyouts to begin cutting R.I. staff

WEST GREENWICH -- Amgen Inc. has begun reducing its Rhode Island staff as the international biotech company prepares to shut down one of the two drug-production facilities at its West Greenwich complex.

A segment of the plant’s 1,600 employees have been offered a buyout package that includes a lump-sum payment, a period of continued health insurance and career counseling, Amgen spokesman Larry Bernard said.

Staff who have worked for Amgen fewer than five years are ineligible. The individual “voluntary transition program” packages, part of a companywide program, are structured based on an employee’s salary and tenure.

Bernard declined to disclose how many, if any, of Amgen’s Rhode Island workers have agreed to retire voluntarily. Their decisions are due early next month.

“We still need Rhode Island,” Bernard said. “We’ll still be big, we just won’t be as big.”

--Journal staff writer Benjamin N. Gedan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:10 PM | Comment

Rash of phoned-in bomb threats appear related

NEWPORT -- In Vista, Calif., the manager of a grocery store was warned over the telephone that he could be shot at any time and was being watched.

In Prescott, Ariz., a caller said he knew the supermarket manager was sitting down because he could see him, making his violent threats against the store more believable.

And in Hutchinson, Kan., supermarket employees were ordered to get rid of their cell phones and to take off their clothes by a caller who said he could see inside the store. Some actually disrobed.

In each of these recent episodes, as happened at a Wal-Mart in Newport yesterday, the caller threatened to explode a bomb if money was not wired to him. But the Wal-Mart in Newport appears to be the only store that reportedly conceded to his demands by wiring him $10,000 overseas. A manager at a grocery store in Buchanan, Kan., was on the phone with the caller arranging for money to be sent when the line went dead.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, which is assisting local police, say these and other phoned-in extortion attempts to supermarkets, banks and department stores in nearly a dozen states around the country appear to be related. Most have occurred in just past the week.

“At this point, there are enough similarities that it appears to be one person or one group of folks,” said FBI spokesman Rich Kolko. “Some of the leads have led us to look overseas.”

Some reports have suggested the calls originated in Portugal.

The Newport case, while proving to be the most rewarding to the scammer and the most costly to any business, may actually be the most helpful to authorities. Newport say the foreign money transfer is giving them leads to follow.

“We now know where the money was transferred to. Once the money was wired, it was cashed right away,” he said. “The officials on the other end have been working with us…in an attempt to identify someone. They are closing in on the identity of the individual.”

A Wal-Mart spokeswoman declined to answer questions today.

“It is an open investigation. We’re referring any questions over to the investigation units. I can tell you we are assisting federal and local law enforcement units as they conduct their investigations. And beyond that I wouldn’t have any additional information,” said spokeswoman Sharon Weber.

-- Journal staff writer Richard Salit

Kolko, the FBI spokesman, said the agency could not officially make decisions on whether businesses should make payments: "That’s a decision they have to make.”

He did urge businesses across the nation to “keep your people safe” and to “be a good witness for us.” He suggested that victims immediately take notes of what they have observed and said many companies provide handy tip sheets for employees on how to handle bomb threats.

Kolko said the first reported bomb scam occurred on Aug. 23. But, he said, “it really started going on Sunday.”

He listed the victims as “grocery stores, banks and Wal-Marts” in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Arizona, Oregon, Virginia, Texas and Utah, in addition to Rhode Island. Media reports also indicated the scam targeted businesses in Indiana, California. Many of these businesses have banks or offer in-house money-wiring services.

Yesterday, an anonymous caller made a bomb threat against a Dillons grocery in Hutchinson, Kan., demanding money and ordering everyone in the store to disrobe, according to the Associated Press. Police said no money was paid. Today, police responded to three more bomb threats against Dillons.

Authorities said the caller yesterday appeared to have visual access to the grocery, although officials were investigating whether the caller was out of state and may have hacked into the store’s security system.

-- Journal staff writer Richard Salit

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:53 PM | Comment

Update: Judge bans 'sickout' by Johnston police

JOHNSTON -- Ten police officers called in sick across two shifts today, and a Superior Court judge later issued a restraining order banning police from taking part in a "sickout."

At a news conference this afternoon, town officials asserted the calls were in protest of an investigation by Mayor Joseph Polisena over what he called sweetheart pension deals negotiated by predecessor William Macera's administration with individual police officers.

The officials also said the officers called in sick on the second and third shifts, which run from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and 4 p.m. to midnight, respectively.

Meanwhile, Superior Court Judge Netti Vogel, in her order, said an officer can only call in sick if he or she has a doctor's certificate that details the nature of the illness, the diagnosis, prognosis, and a specific recommendation from the doctor that the person be excused from work.

Five officers individually called in sick for the day shift today and another called in with a family leave illness. As the change toward the 4 p.m. shift came, two patrol officers and two sergeants had called in sick.

The department had to hold over officers from the previous shift and call in people on double time.

The union president took a previously arranged compensatory time; Judge Vogel's order did not apply to that.

Gary T. Gentile, the lawyer for the union, said the union leadership had not known about the action and did not sanction it. Gentile said he did not know until the town's lawyer contacted him this afternoon.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writers Philip Marcelo, John Hill and Mark Reynolds

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:46 PM | Comment

Restaurant owner pleads no contest to shellfish charge

SOUTH KINGSTOWN -- The owner of popular Chinese restaurant in East Greenwich pleaded no contest today to charges that he harvested quahogs and oysters from Narrow River’s polluted waters.

Brian K. Cheng, who has owned China Buffet on Division Street for 14 years, pleaded no contest to one count each of taking quahogs and oysters from polluted waters in District Court, Wakefield. Under the plea agreement, the state dropped a charge of harvesting undersized blue crabs.

The state Department of Environmental Management environmental police say Cheng and a couple of friends dug about 12 gallons of quahogs and a few oysters from flats on the west side of the Narrow River, just south of Middle bridge, on Aug. 6. The Pettaquamscutt, or Narrow River, is closed to shellfishing because of pollution.

Officers seized a large Kikkoman soy sauce bucket brimming with quahogs and two other buckets that were partially filled with shellfish.

Cheng, 38, of 110 Scituate Ave., Hope, initially pleaded not guilty.

Judge John A. McLoughlin today ordered that he contribute $100 to the crime victims’ indemnity fund and that the case be placed on file for one year.

Cheng referred all questions to his lawyer Charles N. Redihan Jr., who declined to comment.

-- Journal staff writer Katie Mulvaney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:38 PM | Comment

Update: Hearing Friday on Burrillville teachers' strike

Journal photo / Steve Szydlowski
These Burrillville students spent the day skateboarding at Eccleston Field, after the teachers' strike action led to the cancellation of the first day of school.

The Burrillville School Committee has asked a judge to order teachers to come to work after the teachers' union voted to strike last night.

That request will be heard in Superior Court, Providence, this Friday morning at 10:30, Superior Court Associate Justice Netti C. Vogel decided this afternoon after a conference with lawyers from both sides.

Benjamin Scungio, a lawyer for the school committee, filed the complaint and a request for an injunction that would compel the teachers back to school. Read the full complaint.

The Burrillville Teachers' Union announced that it had voted in favor of a strike last night, telling the school department in time for it it to handle today like a snow day -- notifying parents and other staff members that there would be no school today.

Today was supposed to have been the district's first day of school for the year.

Classes have also been cancelled for tomorrow and Friday, the school department said.

The union's bargaining agreement expires Friday. The hearing Friday morning will be held in Courtroom 6 on the third floor of the Licht Judicial Complex.

Read more about the contract situation from our report earlier today.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Mark Reynolds

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 4:35 PM | Comment

Governor will convene wind-power group tomorrow

Governor Carcieri tomorrow will convene the first meeting of a group that will review plans for possible wind power projects and talk about them with stakeholders from communities involved.

The group is scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. at Save the Bay headquarters, 100 Save the Bay Drive, Providence.

The governor has expressed support for wind power, asserting it is an affordable energy source that would be better for the environment.

The Office of Energy Resources was charged with finding a way to increase use of renewable energy, with wind power used to generate 15 percent of the state’s electricity, and another 5 percent from other renewable sources, according to the governor's office.

The community stakeholder group has been created to figure where wind power sructure would go. It's meeting Thursday. Community representatives have been invited from Newport, Warwick, Barrington, Bristol, Charlestown, Little Compton, Middletown, Narragansett, New Shoreham, Portsmouth, Tiverton, Warren, and Westerly.

Also invited are various state agencies, the U.S. Coast Guard, environmental groups, trade and activity associations, university representatives, tourism and chamber of commerce representatives.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:34 PM | Comment

Judge's order bans sick out by Johnston police

A Superior Court judge this afternoon issued a restraining order banning Johnston police officers from participating in a "sick out," after ten officers called in sick today across two shifts in apparent protest over stalled contract talks.

An officer can only call in sick, under the order from Judge Netti Vogel, if he or she is accompanied by a doctor's certificate that details the nature of the illness, the diagnosis, prognosis, and a specific recommendation from the doctor that the person be excused from work.

Five officers individually called in sick for the day shift today and another called in with a family leave illness. As the change toward the 4 p.m. shift came, two patrol officers and two sergeants had called in sick.

The department had to hold over officers from the previous shift and call people in on double time.

The union president took a previously arranged comp. time -- Judge Vogel's order did not apply to that.

Gary T. Gentile, the lawyer for the union, said the union leadership had not known about it and did not sanction it. Gentile said he did not know about the sick out until the town's lawyer contacted him this afternoon.

Ealier today, Mayor Joseph M. Polisena called a 4 p.m. news conference to explain the town’s response to the “sick-out” by town police officers this morning.

Polisena added that some officers had talked with him on Tuesday about various concerns involving their employment.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writers John Hill and Mark Reynolds

Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:03 PM | Comment

E. Greenwich in marathon school mediation session

EAST GREENWICH -- Hunkered down in separate rooms, top school administrators and members of the East Greenwich Education Association are engaged in a marathon mediation session, hoping to come to terms with the three-year-old contract before it expires Friday.

School is scheduled to open in East Greenwich on Tuesday, Sept. 4.

Both groups have been mediating with their lawyers present since 10 a.m. They are not expected to break until 7:30 p.m., an official said.

The district has been in mediation status since Aug. 10.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 3:43 PM | Comment

Lincoln group home won't close while appeal ongoing

Families of several adults with severe retardation won a reprieve today. The families are fighting an effort to close their Lincoln group home.

The two sides in the matter emerged from a meeting in Superior Court Judge Netti C. Vogel's chambers with an agreement that the home will remain open while the families and their lawyer have a grievance heard by the state Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals.

Today's developments do not yet guarantee the Lincoln home will stay open, but the lawyer for the families cast it as a win.

The adults have lived together for 25 years in the same group home in Lincoln and don't want to be moved to another home in Smithfield.

The judge's message was there is an appeal process, go through it and see what the process produces before closing the home.

Saying it is for budget reasons, the state has again opted to close the Southwick Drive home and transfer the four, who are in their late 40s and early 50s, to the Smithfield home.

In 1995, the state Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals first closed the adults' Southwick Drive home in Lincoln, and moved the group to a home in Smithfield to save $100,000.

William L. Brennan, the father of resident Patrick Brennan, filed suit on behalf of the four adults, asserting it was a traumatic move that negatively impacted their development. Superior Court Judge Patricia A. Hurst ordered the home reopened.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writer John Hill and Journal archival reports

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:32 PM | Comment

Johnston police call in sick this morning

JOHNSTON – Mayor Joseph M. Polisena has called a press conference to explain the town’s response to a “sick-out” by town police officers this morning.

Police officers on the day shift called in sick today, Polisena said, adding that some officers had talked with him on Tuesday about various concerns involving their employment.

The press conference is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Town Hall.

-- Journal staff writer Mark Reynolds

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:59 PM | Comment

The pediatrician's prescription: A dose of reading

In the future, the doctor might prescribe something new for your child: a book.

If it becomes law, a five-year $85-million proposal written by U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, would have doctors and nurses give parents a children's book to take home at every wellness visit. Doctors would also advise parents it's important to read aloud to your children and give age-appropriate reading tips.

The Prescribe a Book Act -- S-1895 -- which is cosponsored by Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, would set up a federal pediatric early literacy grant initiative based on the long-time Reach Out and Read program.

Reed's office said in a news release that Reach Out and Read is a national, nonprofit children’s literacy program that focuses on children at greatest risk: those 6 months to 5 years old living at or near poverty level.

Each child in Reach Out and Read begins kindergarten with a home library of up to 10 books and a parent who has heard at every well-child visit about the importance of books and reading.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 2:13 PM | Comment

2nd suspect in Providence murder surrenders

PROVIDENCE -- A second suspect has been arrested in the
shooting death earlier his month of a Fall River, Mass., man during what the police say was a drug deal gone bad.

Sylvester Moses, 20, of Providence, turned himself in this morning and has been charged with murdering Marc Quintal, according to the Providence police.

Moses is the second person arrested in connection with the August 15th murder. David Mello, also 20, was arrested on August 23.

The police have not said which of the suspects is believed to have pulled the trigger on Quintal.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:05 PM | Comment

Update: School bus hit in movie-like crash / Photo

Journal photo / Bill Murphy
Police and rescue crews respond to the scene of the accident.

LINCOLN – In a maneuver more like a movie stunt, a motorist traveling north on Route 99 this morning hit an embankment, went into the air, over a pickup truck and crashed into the back of a North Smithfield school bus.

The car driven by Roland Boutiette, 31, of Woonsocket, then hit a tree and rolled over several times before coming to a stop at the location just north of the Sayles Hill Road exit.

No one was seriously injured, and no children were sitting in the back of the bus, where the car hit, Deputy Chief Brian Sullivan said.

None of the 38 students were hurt, according to North Smithfield Schools Supt. Stephen Lindberg.

The bus was serving students in the Halliwell and North Smithfield elementary schools -- kindergarten through sixth grade, according to Robert Lafleur, the School Committee chairman.

The crash was in the northernmost tip of Lincoln -- an area where a bus route briefly crossed into Lincoln before returning to North Smithfield.

Parents were called and the district will be tracking the students with counselors to see how they are doing and that there are no traumatic after effects, particularly for the youngest who were aboard.

A note will be going home with all elementary school students explaining what happened.

Sullivan said the car, a Mercury, was so damaged, he couldn’t tell what model it was. “It looked like it had been through a car crusher,” he said.

The driver, Boutiette, was taken to a local hospital and has been released.

No charges have been filed, and the accident reconstruction team is investigating with state police.

-- projo.com staff writers Brandie Jefferson and Michael P. McKinney, and Journal staff writer John Hill

"In many ways we are blessed as a community -- it could have been worse," Lindberg said.

Lindberg said emergency responders checked all students thoroughly and found no bumps or bruises. Lindberg said the children ranged in age from five years old to 11 or 12. For the kindergartners aboard, it was just their second day on a school bus.

In the accident's aftermath, students could be seen boarding another bus, from North Smithfield, which then drove away with the students on board.

Lindberg credited the driver and bus monitor with calling central office to keep people apprised of the situation.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:48 PM | Comment

R.I. racing pigeon flys off track

PROVIDENCE - A local pigeon has found its way across state lines.

Gert Iannazzi tells the Eagle-Tribune of North Andover, Mass., that there were a few unusual things about a bird she’d been seeing in her Methuen yard for the past week.

For one thing, the bird was unusually comfortable around humans. She could pick it up without it trying to fly away.

For another, it was wearing a nametag.

The bird, Iannazzi learned, is racing pigeon. According to the band it wears around its ankle, it's a member the Rhode Island Racing Club.

The pigeons typically race in late summer and fall and can find their way back from more than 1,000 miles away. But rather than send this bird off on its own, Iannazzi plans to care for it while she looks for its owner.

Find more information about pigeon racing at the American Racing Pigeon Union.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:47 PM | Comment

RIPTA service changes take effect Saturday

Rescheduled trips on about six bus routes and service on Route #57 to a new park n' ride lot in North Providence are among changes to bus service for the fall, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority announced today.

RIPTA will carry out the changes beginning this Saturday. They are part of regular updates three times a year due to seasonal change and passenger use, a RIPTA news release said.

The new park n’ ride lot is at Smith and Turcone streets in North Providence.

Also, Providence school service and service to Salve Regina University resumes for the academic year.

The following routes will be affected by the service changes:

* 1 Eddy/Gaspee

* 11 Broad Street

* 18 Union Avenue

* 19 Plainfield/Westminster

* 22 Reservoir/Pontiac

* 42 Hope Street

* 54 Lincoln/Woonsocket

* 57 Smith Street

* 60 Providence/Newport

* 62 Thames/Towne Center

* 64 Newport/URI

* 66 URI/Galilee

* 67 Bellevue/Salve Regina

* 211 Kingston Connection

RIPTA advised passengers to check the new printed individual schedules effective Sept. 1. The schedules are at Kennedy Plaza and www.ripta.com. For information, call 781-9400 or go to the Web site.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:10 PM | Comment

Photo: Golfer Sergio Garcia warms up to the fans

Journal photo / Bob Breidenbach
Golfer Sergio Garcia signs autographs for fans before heading to the driving range this morning as he and other players prepare for the Deutsche Bank Championship at the Tournament Players Club in Norton, Ma. The tournament starts Friday and runs through Monday.

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:37 AM | Comment

Burrillville schools will ask court to bring teachers back

The Burrillville School Department plans to ask a judge to order teachers to come to work after the teachers' union voted to strike last night and the first day of school was canceled today.

Supt. Steven Welford said the school department is "seeking an order from a judge to have (teachers) come to work."

Benjamin Scungio, a school department lawyer, said he plans to file the paperwork today.

The Burrillville Teachers' Union announced that it had voted in favor of a strike last night, telling the school department in time for it it to handle today like a snow day; notifying parents and other staff members that there would be no school.

The union's bargaining agreement expires Friday.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:04 AM | Comment

Burrillville teachers meeting today

Union representatives are meeting with Burrillville teachers on what was supposed to be the first day of school to discuss how to move forward after teachers voted in favor of a strike.

Spokesman Patrick Crowley said the union representatives won't meet with the school department until Tuesday at 5 p.m.

"The local union has directed everyone not to report to work until further notice," he said this morning.

He added that the teachers do not consider themselves to be on strike today.

The administration called for a snow day after teachers announced they would not go to work today, canceling classes and providing an administrative framework to handle staff that is not part of the teacher's union including secretaries and bus services.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 9:02 AM | Comment

No school in Burrillville, teachers strike / Photo

Journal photo / Bill Murphy
Despite the sign, schools are closed this morning in Burrillville, as the teachers, with no contract in place, have gone out on strike.

BURRILLVILLE — The town’s teachers will not report to their classrooms this morning for what was expected to be the first day of the 2007-2008 school year.

The teachers’ union leaders announced a strike late last night on the heels of fruitless collective-bargaining negotiations stretching back to late last year.

Schools Supt. Steven Welford confirmed last night that the district had canceled today’s classes.

-- Journal reporter Mark Reynolds

The teachers are dissatisfied with contract proposals that, according to a union official, offer too little money and try to change their roles. They also disagreed with proposals to increase limits on class size.

“We wanted to try and get this resolved,” said the official, Patrick M. Crowley, assistant executive director of the National Education Association of Rhode Island. “We’ve invested the time and effort into trying to get a deal that would work.

“It’s not a matter of one group walking away,” he added. “It’s a matter of two sides that can’t reach a deal.”

The union’s representatives have negotiated with representatives of the School Committee on various occasions since last November.

The talks have been intense since Friday.

On Monday, the union membership, numbering 203 teachers, voted overwhelmingly in favor of a strike should their union leaders deem it necessary.

The teachers then went to work as scheduled on Monday and again yesterday in anticipation of a breakthrough that would head off a strike.

However, both sides seemed to be anticipating a standoff late yesterday afternoon.

A lawyer representing the school district — which educates about 2,700 students — advised parents to log onto the district’s Web site ( www.bsd-ri.net) and tune into local television news channels to see if the first day of school would be delayed.

Any change in the opening of school would be treated as a snow day, he said.

The same lawyer, Benjamin M. Scungio, issued a news release that sought to reinforce the district’s commitment to continued negotiations.

“The school committee fully supports its teachers and the good work they do in the educational interests of the children in the town of Burrillville,” Scungio wrote. “The school committee is grateful that the teachers continue to perform their professional duties even though we have yet to achieve an agreement.”

Scungio’s release says the school system wants to reform the existing contract in a way that allows greater cost-sharing of health care and other benefits and creates “efficiencies within the contract to free-up additional money.”

Crowley was less specific when he was asked to identify sticking points in the negotiations.

“Management is asking for things they can’t afford to buy this year,” he said.

The system wants to change the role of teachers from professionals to staffers who take direction, Crowley said. He declined to elaborate.

Scungio cited the town’s limited ability “to meet union financial requests” as an issue in the contract negotiations.

For example, a new state regulation requires high school teachers to spend 330 minutes per day in instructional time, the release says.

The requirement forced the district to hire five new teachers at a cost of more than $300,000, but the state did not supply any financial aid to help the district pay for the additional cost, according to Scungio.

The highest paid teacher earns $66,000 a year in the Burrillville system, Crowley said. A teacher on the first step earns about $34,000, he said.

He rated that pay scale between the 16th and 19th highest in the state.

Language in the existing contract could add a twist to any legal wrangling in the event of a strike.

The existing contract expires Friday, but it also stipulates that teachers must work no more than 181 school days, according to Crowley.

The teachers logged their 181st day of work on the last day of school in the spring, he said. Thus, they are under no contractual obligation to report to work, he said.

He acknowledged that the school system interprets the contract differently. The schools’ lawyer, Scungio, was not available to comment on the issue yesterday afternoon.

Welford was uncertain about the prospects of school opening tomorrow.

“We don’t know,” he said. “Obviously there’s process. We will go through that process.”

He promised that the system would explain its plans in a news release today.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:02 AM | Comment

The string of nice weather continues

This weather should feel familiar. Again, we're looking at sunny and 83 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

Tonight's low is expected to be 61 degrees.

Tomorrow we may see patchy fog in the morning, followed by a hotter day with temperatures in the high 80s.

For more weather and regular updates, see projo.com/weather.

Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page

Today's front page features photographs and a story about a bomb threat that cleared the Wal-Mart in Newport anda story about Governor Carcieri's efforts to privatize more state jobs.

Download a copy of today's front page.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment