The Mackinac Center's Paul Kearsey concludes that not accepting the union demands is NOT bad faith bargaining:

"In the real world, sometimes you get to haggle and sometimes you don't. The presence of a union doesn't make economic reality go away, and collective bargaining is not a magic wand that makes big raises affordable year after year after year.

Among other things, the Public Employment Relations Act elevates collective bargaining to a legal right, and the usual practice of collective bargaining is for compromises to be reached over several meetings between unions and employers. Workers have been taught to expect that employers will make concessions during negotiations. Expectations are not rights, but when expectations are not met people sometimes respond in negative ways, like illegal strikes. Among the many questions that the Legislature and governor need to ask is whether or not PERA has elevated government employees' expectations to unreasonable levels."

The bottom line? The faculty can be mindful of current economic conditions that affect us all, can note that their gold plated government sector positions are not only coveted, but are beginning to draw attention as those which might be viewed as overcompensated anyhow by taxpayers.

Or, they take their marbles and go home ...