Teachers Union To Address Contract Talks At D124 Board Meeting

EVERGREEN PARK, IL — Parents and community members are urged to attend the Evergreen Park ESD 124 Board of Education meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 25, where members of the teachers’ union are expected to address current negotiations for a new contract. The meeting will start at 6 p.m. at Central Middle School, 9400 Sawyer Ave. D124 board members will meet in closed session first, which could take some time.

Last week, Evergreen Park Federation of Teachers 124 filed an intent to strike notice with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board after rejecting the D124 board’s counter offer of an 11.5-percent salary increase for certified staff and increasing the salary of non-certified staff by 15 percent for non-certified staff over three years. Both sides met again on Monday but were unable to reach a tentative agreement. Another mediation session has been set for Oct. 2.

>>> D124 Teacher Contract Talks End With No Tentative Agreement

The union’s lead negotiator and D124 kindergarten teacher Linda Blaeser and other union members will speak at the meeting regarding the state of contract negotiations. Parents and community members will also have the opportunity to speak during public comments.

EPFT 124 represents 173 full-time teachers and 54 full-time professionals who work in the district's four K-5 elementary schools, including Northeast, Northwest, Southeast and Southwest, and Central Middle School. The union wants to being salaries closer to neighboring districts in order to remain competitive and able to attract and retain qualified teachers.

Blaeser told Patch before Monday’s negotiating session that salaries are all that is left on the table to “negotiate and talk about.” The union on the EPFT124 Facebook page has also posted an informational flier, which we include here.

The teachers union went on strike for two weeks in 2012. Both sides described Monday’s talks as “productive.” If a tentative contract agreement cannot be reached, the district’s teachers and paraprofessionals could walk as early as Oct. 17.

Informational flier posted on EPFT124 Facebook page