Inside the Indiana PSO Crisis and NSO’s Response
By Kelly Hagen, North Dakota Staff Organization
When Anita Vernon, who was a UniServ director for the Indiana State Teachers Association (ISTA) and vice president of her staff union, the Professional Staff Organization (PSO), learned recently by email that ISTA was sticking to the decision of its executive director, Nate Williams, to terminate her, she admits she wasn’t too surprised. After all, it was Williams who was deciding whether he was in wrong or not, by firing her and her colleague and former president of PSO, Rick Scalf.
Still, she said, it was — and remains — shocking, heartbreaking and grief-inducing.
“It has literally been 45 years since I have not worked,” Vernon said. “I am going through the steps of grief right now.”
For Vernon and Scalf, the past several weeks have been about more than their own employment. What began as a dispute over ISTA management’s proposed restructuring of UniServ work has escalated into a national fight over just cause, retaliation, member service, union democracy and whether union employers must live by the same values they ask other employers to uphold.
With unfair labor practice charges pending with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), arbitration ahead, and National Staff Organization (NSO) affiliates and members across the country sending letters of support, showing up in person and adhering to sanctions NSO has imposed against ISTA, the PSO crisis has become a test case for staff organizations nationwide.
Justin Zartman, NSO Vice President of Defense, said the stakes are clear.
“It would be laughable if it were not so reckless and damaging,” Zartman said. “This entire episode is shaping up to be a textbook example of how not to manage an organization, how not to conduct an investigation, and how not to treat unionized employees protected under federal labor law.”
Staff Restructuring Plan at Center
At the center of the dispute is ISTA management’s proposal to dramatically restructure the UniServ model used to support local associations across Indiana. According to Scalf and Vernon, the plan would have shifted staff into narrower specialty roles focused primarily on either organizing or negotiations assistance, while doubling the number of locals each staff member would support.
Scalf said PSO’s concerns were never rooted in opposition to change itself.
“We were not opposed to change how the work looks,” he said. “But it felt very unconsidered. It was an idea somebody had, but without the strategic direction behind it.”
PSO told ISTA management they believed any major restructuring effort needed to involve meaningful input from both staff and ISTA members before implementation.
“For a union in particular, which by its nature is intended to be a democratic organization, it really matters,” Scalf said. “If you engage in something that’s going to fundamentally change what the work of the union is statewide and you don’t have input from the members, then you are doing it to people instead of doing it with them.”
Vernon described the process as “whiplash,” saying management frequently shifted positions or failed to follow through on commitments to share information or continue discussions.
“They would say something and then they would do something else,” Vernon said. “We wanted to work collaboratively with them. They didn’t want that.”
Lunch Conversation Leads to Terminations
According to both, tensions escalated after a January lunch meeting with the president of ISTA’s Fort Wayne local association, who had questions about submitting new business items to the ISTA Representative Assembly. Vernon and Scalf maintain the conversation was procedural, routine and conducted openly during the workday.
“It was such an insignificant conversation, in my head,” Vernon said. “We weren’t writing anything for her. We were helping answer process questions.”
Management later alleged the meeting constituted improper interference in governance affairs. Scalf and Vernon were placed under investigation, put on administrative leave and told that they would be terminated.
Zartman said NSO leadership was stunned by both the severity of the disciplinary action and the lack of progressive discipline leading up to it.
“You are going after two long-term employees with clean records and terminating both,” Zartman said. “That’s the capital punishment of employment matters.”
Zartman, who has an extensive background in labor law and serves as NSO Vice President of Defense, said he reviewed the allegations and disciplinary process closely.
“I don’t think it meets just-cause standards,” he said. “The investigation wasn’t done properly, and the penalty doesn’t fit the alleged conduct. And I don’t think there was equal treatment.”
Zartman argues the disciplinary action was ultimately retaliation tied to the union’s resistance to the restructuring plan and its insistence on negotiating over drastic changes to job responsibilities and working conditions. Multiple unfair labor practice charges have since been filed against ISTA management with the NLRB.
For Scalf, the dispute is now about more than Indiana’s restructuring plan itself.
“It’s not even about the restructure anymore,” he said. “Changes were finally starting to be made to that plan. It’s about the method and the response. If that’s how it works, then we don’t really have a union.”
Strong National Support Emerges
That concern has resonated with NSO affiliates and their members across the country.
“If your reaction is to target the president and the vice president when there’s conflict, it sets a dangerous precedent,” Zartman said. “We can’t, as NSO, allow that to happen.”
In response, three dozen NSO affiliates across the nation have mobilized in support of Vernon and Scalf. State affiliates have issued letters of solidarity, NSO leaders — including Zartman and President Brad Darjean — have traveled to Indiana to attend events and demonstrations, and members have amplified the issue through social media campaigns and direct outreach to ISTA leadership.
For Vernon, that support became one of the few stabilizing forces during an otherwise devastating period.
“To see people drive from other states, to stand outside in the rain and cold for us — it blew my mind,” Vernon said. “That support has kept me going in the darkest parts of all of this.”
Scalf echoed that sentiment, describing the response from union family as transformational on both a professional and personal level.
“I wouldn’t have made it through this without the support from NSO,” he said. “When that power differential is pointed directly at you, knowing you are not alone matters.”
Local Unions Show Their Solidarity
Support for PSO’s former leaders has extended beyond NSO affiliates and staff organizations. Scalf noted that labor unions across Indiana, including local steelworkers and bricklayers, have publicly shown solidarity with PSO throughout the dispute.
“It’s been good to see working folks getting together and holding the line,” Scalf said.
At the same time, some ISTA locals and rank-and-file members have begun speaking out publicly about the direction of the organization’s leadership. In early May, the Pioneer Classroom Teachers Association unanimously approved a vote of no confidence in Williams and ISTA President Jennifer Smith-Margraf, citing concerns about transparency and leadership. In a statement shared on social media, the local emphasized the vote was “not a declaration that ISTA is beyond repair,” but rather “a call for accountability, stronger leadership, and a renewed commitment to the members who make this union what it is.”
The statement also suggested growing frustration among local associations over the handling of the PSO dispute, declaring: “We believe this is the beginning of local associations speaking out, demanding transparency, and advocating for the leadership our educators deserve.”
‘Still a Lot of Fight Left’
Despite the terminations, Zartman, Vernon, and Scalf said the fight is far from over. Arbitration proceedings are expected in the coming months, while unfair labor practice cases continue moving through the NLRB process.
“This is just the next stage,” Zartman said. “We still have a lot of fight left in us.”
Now ISTA management will need to defend their actions in front of a neutral arbitrator. It’s management’s burden, and they must defend their action when all the facts are put out on the table. “NSO looks forward to arguing our case and getting a final decision from an arbitrator,” Zartman said.
Both Vernon and Scalf said they remain committed to seeing the process through, not only for themselves, but for union staff nationwide who may someday find themselves in similar situations. “We could have taken settlements and walked away,” Vernon said. “But this is bigger than us.”
For NSO leaders, this crisis has become a defining test of solidarity inside the labor movement itself.
“NSO is a union of unionists,” Zartman said. “An injury to one is an injury to all. This is really what NSO is here for — to defend our members and to take management to task.”
As the case moves into its next phase, NSO leaders are encouraging affiliates and members to remain engaged, continue monitoring updates and maintain pressure and visibility around the dispute.
“Don’t forget about us,” Vernon said.