It's A Deal: Newark Teacher Union Agrees On New Contract With District

NEWARK, NJ — They’re getting a raise.

On Friday, the Newark Teachers Union (NTU) and the Newark Board of Education announced that they have reached a tentative five-year contract that will mean a 4.5 percent raise for its members.

The NTU represents teachers, school clerks and aides throughout New Jersey’s largest public school district.

First-year teachers will earn a new starting salary of $65,000. Over the course of the next five years, this starting salary will increase to $74,000 by the fifth year of the contract.

Here are some highlights of the tentative deal, union leaders said:

SALARY – The tentative agreement provides all NTU members a 4.5 percent raise for each of the contract’s five years, plus additional increases for educators with master’s degrees or PhD’s and those who have put in 35 or more years of service. The new starting salary will be $65,000 and in the fifth year of the contract, the 2029-2030 school year, it will be $74,000. In addition, the tentative agreement includes salary increases for non-instructional staff, substitutes and hourly-pay employees.

CURRICULUM – Included in the tentative agreement is language allowing teachers to select or even design curriculum, and it wouldn’t change during the course of the year without educator buy-in. Further, teachers would provide professional development that matches the standards-based curriculum to ensure they understand what they will be teaching, negating the need to contract this out or buy off-the-shelf professional development.

TEACHER EVALUATIONS – Another provision involves teacher evaluations. If a teacher is found to be underperforming, supports would be provided and the teacher would be observed again and re-evaluated. This way, evaluations will be more helpful than punitive.

‘REASONABLE’ CASELOADS – The tentative contract also includes a child study committee team to ensure that social workers and other employees who work at several schools have reasonable caseloads and schedules.

Workers plan to hold hold several informational sessions about the tentative contract’s provisions before a June 6 membership ratification vote, spokespeople said.

NTU President John Abeigon was among the officials who gave a thumbs-up to the deal.

“We felt the best way to get a contract that helps Newark students succeed and thrive would be to be partners, not combatants,” Abeigon said.

“What makes this contract transformational and a model for other districts is that teachers will have a genuine voice in all aspects of Newark education, including having seats on committees that deal with instruction issues and district operations,” Abeigon added.

Newark School Superintendent Roger León agreed that contract negotiations were friendly and productive this year.

“Successful schools must have a culture of collaboration and good communication,” León said. “The NTU and district teams exemplified that during the contract negotiation process, and we fully expect it to continue over the next several years.”

American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten said the tentative contract agreement is an “example of how best to help our students and teachers.”

“Teachers will have a genuine voice in classroom and even school operations, and teachers and administrators have pledged to work together to make this a reality,” Weingarten said. “Newark also has pledged to pay educators a more livable wage, recognizing the role educators play. No doubt all of this will benefit kids.”

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