Labor Council Backs Center

Hurón Valley Central Labor Council AFL-CIO voted Tuesday night to support a county-wide career center but with the understanding that labor will have a voice in planning and implementing the vocational education program. Before giving their endorsement, labor leaders representing 40 unions and 7,651 workers in the área expressed concern about lack of unión involvement in planning the proposed career center and being contacted too late to plan an adequate campaign among unión members for support of the center. On Jan. 22, voters will be asked to approve' a one-mill charter millage for building and operating a career center to serve primarily llth and 12th graders from 10 school districts within the Washtenaw Intermedíate School District (WISD). Fred Veigel, president of the Huron Valley Central Labor Council, told representatives from the WISD and Ann Arbor public schools, "We (unions) want solid input. What you're trianing those people for is what we're all about. " The center is to serve 2,400 students a day on a half-day basis and will provide occupational preparation for students who plan to enter the labor market immediately upon graduation, supplemental programs for college-bound youths, remedial instruction for special education and handicapped children and adult programs needed for graduation requirements. ' ''UéiogTatë NorriedWfTkfet a pro'-' gram going to turn out a lot of non-union labor," Veigel told Earl Shaffer, director of occupational educa tion for Ann Arbor. public schools, and Patrick Gilbert, WISD's Career Education Planning District coördinator. Citing his own involvement in unions and Ann Arbor school district's cooperation with union apprenticeship programs, Shaffer said, "It wouldn't make sense for schools to train scab labor in a county such as Washtenaw." He assured the union leaders they would be involved, along with business and industry representatiyes and educators, in a planning committee to organize the center and in occupational advisory groups to determine what programs should be offered in various fields. Plans cali for about 40 programs to be offered at the center to be headed by the WISD. Although individual courses have not been identified and the facility will be flexible to allow changes in course offerings, Gilbert said they would within the following broad categories: agricultüre and natural resources, business and office, Communications and media, fine arts and humanities, construction, health, manufacturing, marine science and environment, marketing and distributive occupations, transportation and service industries. The career center would help fill in the educational gap for 50 per cent of the county's high school students who gradúate without vocational training or plans to receive a four-year college degree, Gilbert said. T)nly abouF2Y për cent of the county's seniors gradúate from college. Doesn't it make sense to give the other 80 per cent a fair shake? Shaffer asked the union leaders. The general education program which many students take only prepares them for general unemployment, he added. Bernis Bradley, representing Local 252 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, said he has serious reservations about increasing property taxes. Voter approval of the proposed career center is "like buying a pig in a poke," Bradley added. Elmer Elliott, representing Local 1327 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employés, said he supported the proposed career center and added unions should push for involvement in planning of the center rather than letting management make all the planning decisions. ___