PROVO — A lawsuit brought on by 33 employees against the Provo School District should be dismissed because the group did not exhaust other avenues to appeal what they believe are unfavorable decisions about pay and benefits, according to court documents recently filed by the Provo School District.

Attorneys representing the Provo School District, the Provo Education Association, the Utah Education Association and Bonneville Uniserv (a local nonprofit that's an advocate for teachers), argue in the response that a 4th District Court judge should dismiss the case with prejudice, and that the plaintiffs should be ordered to pay the defendants' attorneys fees and court costs.

The attorneys filed three responses on Sept. 1 to the lawsuit that Provo teachers and classified hourly employees filed against them on Aug. 15.

The response argues against the employees' claims that they were not well represented in contract negotiations with the district. Contracts were ratified by majority vote among PEA members, the court documents state. The filings also dispute employees' claims that voting on the contract in the spring of 2004 was flawed.

The contract ratified during voting by employees who were members of the Provo Education Association and the district's classified employees union for the 2004-2005 school year, included provisions making a majority of the employees ineligible for a post-retirement a supplemental Medicare insurance program.

The contract was ultimately ratified, and it stated that employees with less than 20 years with the district who did not turn age 55 by January 2005 would no longer be eligible for the so-called Medigap program. The district was having difficulty paying because of new funding demands recommended by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board.

Employees claim they accepted salaries that are lower than other school districts in part because they believed benefits such as Medigap made up for the difference in pay.

The court documents filed in response say those expectations were not guaranteed.

Because each contract lasts for only one school year, the employees should not have expected that Medigap was a benefit promised to employees indefinitely, the court documents state.

The documents also state that employees were mistaken in believing money saved by paying employees lower salaries was put in a trust for future Medigap expenses. The school district operates its budget on a "cash basis system of accounting," court documents state, which means that expenses are paid as they are due.

The court documents also maintain that school boards are protected from lawsuits by the Utah Governmental Immunity Act, another reason the judge should dismiss the case.

The documents state the UEA should be dropped from the suit because it did not participate in the contract negotiations being disputed.

One teacher, Carrie Mecham, has since dropped out of the case. The Deseret Morning News could not reach her for comment.

The attorney representing the remaining Provo school employees, Evan Schmutz, did not return a phone call to the Deseret Morning News.

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E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com