U-46 Teachers Reject New Contract: UPDATE

More than 2,000 U-46 teachers that make up the Elgin Teachers Association have rejected a new three-year contract proposed by the school district. The Elgin Teachers Association voted 1,438 to 639 against the proposal last on May 24, the Elgin Courier-News reports.

Union President Richard Johnson told the newspaper he was surprised by the overwhelming amount of teachers who voted against the contract and said he expected the vote to be closer. In a letter e-mailed to union members he said the union looks forward to continued feedback from members and "getting back to the table to address those concerns."

Negotiations between the school district and union began in January and the teachers' current contract is set to expire in August, according to the Elgin Courier-News.

The latest three-year contract proposed by the school district centered around moving away from the traditional teacher salary model and instead aimed to compensate teachers for the varied ways they improve their own instructional practice and the learning environment of their students and colleagues, U-46 school officials said in a news release. The tentative agreement for a 2018-21 contract between the teachers association and the administration was developed through four months of bargaining that ended in early May, according to a U-46 news release.

Under the Career Credit Model, teachers could have earned pay based on 150 to 1,800 credits spread out on a 12-level salary scale. Based on the model, that means today’s teachers could still earn one of 159 different salaries but will see an average annual increase of nearly four percent (3.88 percent) over the next three years. Current step and lane placement would have been converted to career credits as explained in an overview on the ETA website. ETA members were informed of the new model in recent weeks.

Additionally, the new model promised:

• Continued access to a higher salary through experience credit;
• Continued access to a higher salary through formal education;
• Opportunity to shorten the amount of time to reach the highest salary rate;
• Improved recognition for contributions to the learning environment through collaboration with colleagues on committees such as those convened to write curriculum

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