Newark Teachers Union Agrees To New Contract, Salary Increases

NEWARK, NJ — Newark’s public school teachers, clerks and aides have agreed to a new, four-year contract that will reportedly provide salary increases and other benefits. About 1,600 members of the Newark Teachers Union (NTU) voted to ratify the contract, which garnered 86% approval, according to district administrators.

The new contract will retroactively date back to July 1, 2015 and forward through June 30, 2019, NTU representatives said.

NTU members will receive an annual average salary increase of 2.43 percent between 2015 through 2019, with the possibility to bargain from 2.95 percent to 3.25 percent in the final year of the contract, according to a union news release.

“We are proud to see our members’ hard work and commitment to Newark’s students recognized with pay raises to help them catch up after years of state-imposed austerity and increased health insurance costs,” NTU President John Abeigon said following the contract’s ratification.

“The new contract is fiscally responsible at a time when the district is facing fiscal pressures, securing savings for both educators and the district - through changes in medical and prescription options, for example - to ensure that [the district] is able to sustain educator raises and bonuses for the long-term,” Newark school administrators stated in a news release.

According to administrators, the contract will:

• Raise pay rates for all per-diem teacher aides to $15 per hour by its final year
• Give elementary school teachers an extra, guaranteed 50-minute class prep period

Newark school administrators also stated that the contract “retains the key elements of the groundbreaking 2012 contract,” which ties financial incentives for teachers to classroom performance.

According to district administrators, the incentives include:

• Performance Bonuses: “The district will continue to reward great teachers with performance bonuses. Teachers who are paid on the Universal Salary Scale and receive a Highly Effective rating on the Annual Summative Evaluation will receive a $5,000 bonus.”
• Pay-for-Performance: “The district will maintain the current structure for earning raises, where educators must earn a step on their salary scale based on their evaluation rating.”
• Extended Learning Time: “Under this new contract, schools that currently have extended learning time will maintain it and the opportunity will be available to other interested schools.”

Michael Iovino, NTU Secretary Treasurer and a lead history teacher at Technology High School, said that the contract also offers educators additional flexibility in taking personal days in half-day increments.

“We know our teachers would rather be in the classroom than anywhere else, so this new provision allows us to take care of our personal responsibilities with a minimum of disruption to classroom learning,” Iovino said.

• See related article: Newark School Custodians Get New Contract: Goodbye Seniority-Based Raises
• See related article: Newark Schools’ New Contract With Middle Management Will Be ‘Performance-Based’

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File photo: Newark Public Schools

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