PCC President Larry Fitzmorris confers with Chair Cynthia Perrotti before the school committee meeting tonight.

After a nearly one-hour executive session, the Portsmouth School Committee tonight announced two unanimous decisions: they declared contract negotiations with NEA Portsmouth at an impasse, and voted to move forward with arbitration. Both votes were 6-0 (with Sylvia Wedge absent).

In other business, the committee also had a second reading and vote on the contested personnel policy #4111 which reduces the role of seniority in staffing decisions.

NEA Portsmouth vice-president Sue Hatch urged the committee to defer. "This is part of negotiations," said Hatch. "You said last night, 'how can we say you are not bargaining in good faith?' This is how."

Several other teachers also voiced their concerns. Chair Cynthia Perrotti limited their time to two minutes each, and cut off discussion at 15 minutes.

Perrotti dismissed concerns that reducing seniority protections would lead to a dog-eat-dog work environment, saying that the same arguments could be made against merit pay. "I am a proponent of merit pay," she said.

And Perrotti also questioned the inherent value of seniority. "If I hire someone to roof my house," said Perrotti, "I wouldn't look for the oldest."