Cliff Buchan
News Editor

A new labor agreement for teachers in ISD 831 will command $2.6 million in new spending over the two years of the contract.

The two-year agreement was approved by the school board Thursday, Dec. 1 by way of a unanimous 7-0 vote. The action followed an earlier ratification vote by the Forest Lake Education Association.

The approval last week is retroactive to July 1 of this year and covers the two school years through June 30, 2006.

Base terms of the settlement will mean a two-year total package increase of 8.05 percent, according to the contract.

The settlement provides salary schedule improvement of 1 percent in the 2005-2006 school year and 4.25 percent in the 2006-2007 school year.

Teachers will also receive an additional 1.4 percent of ISD 831 contribution for health insurance in each year of the proposed contract.

The contract impacts 535 teachers represented by the local union.

Big dollars

With 535 employees, the teachers union represents the districtís largest employee group and commands major dollars.

The new contract will mean new spending of $764,483 in the first year of the agreement and $1,875,532 in the second year.

The cost for all salary and benefits for the two year period is $2,640,015, according to the structural balance documentation reviewed by the school board on Dec. 1.

In total dollars, the teachers bargaining group required $31,853,466 in the school year that ended on June 30 of this year.

For the school year that began on July 1, a total of $32,617,949 will be required.

The cost obligation is higher in the school year starting July 1, 2006. Total dollars of $34,493,481 will be needed in the second year of the agreement.

Along with salary, a key component of the new agreement is additional district dollars for health insurance, said Superintendent Lynn Steenblock.

Under the contract, the district agreed to increase the payment of dependent medical-hospitalization insurance from $280 to $320 a month in the first year.

In the second year, the district coverage expands from $320 to $365 a month.

The district also agreed to sponsor a health care savings account for all teachers starting their ninth year of service. The plans allows teachers to place 1 percent of their base salary in the account starting July 1, 2006. There is no district contribution to the savings account plan.

The teachers union and the district also agreed by a memorandum of understanding to create a revised supplementary pay schedule that will be considered during the 2007-2009 negotiations. The agreement covers coaching and advisory positions.

Teachers and the district will continue to study the state proposed Q Comp alternative compensation proposal and modified the list of schools that will be used in a joint effort to work toward average compensation for teachers. The district had planned to levy some $500,000 against local property taxes for the Q Comp proposal in the 2005-2006 school year.

But with the deadlines expiring last week for such an agreement to be agreed, those dollars will be dropped from the property tax levy for 2006. The agreement, however, leaves open the possibility of having a Q Comp plan in place for the second year of the agreement.

The new agreement also modifies the list of schools to be used for salary comparison purposes. By way of a contract memorandum of understanding, the new list includes Centennial, South Washington County, Hastings, Stillwater, White Bear Lake, Roseville and Mounds View.

Eliminated from the average compensation comparison are: Anoka-Hennepin, Osseo, Dakota County, Farmington, Elk River and Prior Lake. The district has used the comparison list for the past decade.

The cap on funds available for teacher severance payments was also increased. The cap goes from $850,000 to $1 million under the agreement.

Comments

Jim Lindstrom, chief negotiator for the teachersí union, spoke briefly Dec. 1 during the public forum section of the business meeting and thanked the district for a sound bargaining process.

Lindstrom, who has been chief negotiator for the past 11 contracts over 22 years, did not return a call for comment last week. FLEA had yet to release the results of its ratification vote.

Member Karen Morehead, who is leaving the board after a decade of service this month, said it was far from unusual to reach a settlement date well beyond the date when the old contract expires. ìThis is not unusual,î she said, calling the agreement a ìwin-winî situation for the district and its teachers.

Member Keith Dunham said the agreement speaks to the ìcore fabric of what we doî and would go far in helping the district attract and retain good teachers.

ìIím sure it is not as much as the teachers would like,î Dunham said. But the board member said he was optimistic there would be room for salary improvement in future years.

The boardís 7-0 ratification vote came after a 7-0 vote to adopt the required structural balance resolution. The resolution stipulates the settlement is within budget guidelines set by the school board.

What it means

The new contract preserves FLEAís 12-step contract and lane schedules that have long been an integral part of the salary schedule. Longevity payments are also maintained.

Under the contract that expired June 30, a teacher with a BA degree at the starting step was paid a salary of $28,200.

Under the new contract, a teacher at the same level will be paid $28,700 a year in the first year and move to $30,000 a year in the second year.

For a teacher at the 12th step and with a MA degree plus 60 credits earned $55,851 last year. The annual salary will increase to $55,861 this year and move to $57,065 in the second year.

Four longevity steps are provided. Under the old contract, dollar amount of $1700 were paid at year 14, 16 and 20 with a payment of $2000 at year 25.

Under the new contract, the first year provides longevity payments of $2000 at year 14, $2100 at years 16 and 20, and drops to $1800 in year 25.

In the second year, longevity payments total $2500 in years 14, 16 and 20 before dipping to $1500 in year 25.

Teachers are required to work 187 duty days a year under the two-year agreement.

All full-time teachers under a regular contract earn 15 sick leave days each year. Sick leave is allowed to accumulate at varied rates based on a schedule tied to fiscal years. Teachers hired after Jan. 1, 1987, for example, may accumulate a maximum of 285 sick days.

Military leave will be granted to teachers under terms of state law that require the district to pay a salary equal in an amount to the difference between military wages and school pay. Health benefits would be continued until the teachers are covered under military benefits and dependent coverage would be allowed to continue at the expense of the teacher.

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