About 22 Spartan College aerospace mechanics instructors in Tulsa are on strike because of concerns about an increase in the cost of employer health-care coverage.

Several who were on strike demonstrated roadside Monday in front of Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technologys main campus in Tulsa at 8820 E. Pine St. Contract negotiations stopped Thursday after they had been ongoing since discussions began in April.

Spartan College trains airplane pilots and technicians.

Avionics instructor Morgan Neal said union members walked away from the negotiating table Thursday because Spartan College was proposing a 15 percentage point increase on health-care costs for plans that included a spouse, child or family. That would raise the employees burden of the plan to 50 percent from 35 percent in the five-year deal that expired April 30, Neal said.

He said the increase would cost an estimated $3,000 more per employee each year on those plans.

We did try to negotiate with them; we even tried to table the discussion, Neal said. They didnt want to move onto any other issue until we had settled health coverage.

The instructors are members of United Aerospace Workers Local 286.

Spartan College spokeswoman Sheila Curley called the unions walkout abrupt and premature. She said that while family plans were subject to a proposed 15 percentage point increase, individual plans were to stay the same.

Curley said rising health coverage costs is out of Spartan Colleges control and is a national issue that affects private corporations, publicly traded companies and government entities alike.

These are things that have only been discussed, and terms of an agreement have never been reached to be submitted to corporate or leadership for approval or denial, Curley said. Because it simply never reached terms for consideration, the terms are still unknown at this point.

Curley said the strike involves faculty of the aerospace maintenance and non-destructive testing programs, not the pilot faculty. She said the school has 55 maintenance instructors, with some who are continuing to teach despite the strike. Online courses are unaffected, she said.

However, Curley added, certified instructors from other Spartan College campuses are on their way now to Tulsa to resume the interrupted classes. Spartan College, headquartered in Dallas, has campuses in Los Angeles and Denver.

Neal said at this point the union wont rejoin discussions until it receives a contract that members feel is worthy of a vote.

At this point were waiting on the college to bring us a contract that we can look at and vote on, he said. As soon as they call us and tell us theyve got a proposal, well go back to work. Were waiting on them to bring us something.

Curley said its impossible to speculate on how long the strike may go, but that its up to the union to return to negotiations.

Right now they prematurely left those discussions, so theres nothing for them to vote on and nothing for Spartan College to consider, she said.

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Some Spartan College aerospace maintenance instructors are on ... - Tulsa World