Very Strange Way To bargain

Well, I guess I am being sued. From the Las Vegas Sun: Facing steep budget cuts, the Clark County School District is suing the local teachers' union in hopes of avoiding a deadlock over certain spending reductions. The district filed suit Friday in Clark County District Court in Las Vegas against the Clark County Education Association and is asking the court to decide an issue over increased retirement plan contributions. The suit says the district's employees participate in the state Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) and that on Dec. 3 PERS notified the district that on July 1 the employees' contribution rate must increase 1.125 percent. The lawsuit says the increase must be paid in lieu of an equivalent salary increase or be counterbalanced by an equivalent reduction in the employees' salaries. This cost to employees will be $14 million and it's actually paid by the district, the lawsuit said. "This amount equates to approximately 200 full-time district employee positions," the lawsuit noted, adding the district and the union are negotiating a new contract for the 2011-12 school year while the Legislature weighs deep spending reductions. http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2011/apr/12/clark-county-school-district-sues-teachers-union-o/ This is a bargaining issue, so why do you run to the courts to get a ruling? Why not bargain? Further,why isn't the District suing the administrator union and the support staff union? Also, what about the people who are not represented by the union- people who chose to join the union- do you serve them individually? Finally, if you are so sure of your position, legally, why not just implement cuts to the employee's salaries and then let the unions sue? This just baffles me as why the District is suing and I suspect the District is going to spend a lot of money and lose the case.