A new teacher contract has been ratified by the School Board.
Negotiations on the new salary packages have been ongoing since summer. The final contract adds $1,040 to the base salary for all in the bargaining unit, a new step for veteran teachers, new 15-day paid parental leave after birth and adoption, as well as other items.
During the initial negotiations, clarity was needed on budget totals and new money coming into the district, including special education funding from the state, according to an email to the bargaining unit. It took awhile for the negotiations team and the board to come to the same conclusion about budget totals, which led to the longer process, said Jack Low, a member of the negotiations team.
The School Board’s initial offer included an increase of $500 to the base salary, meaning 28% of the new money would be spent on the bargaining unit. In past negotiation cycles, this percentage was around 47, so the negotiations team wanted to allocate the same amount this year.
The board’s initial offer also included the additional step for veteran teachers, 15 days of paid parental leave, an increase to the leave cap from 60 to 90 days, $10 for increased health care monthly, the adoption of a revised supplemental schedule, and step and column movement on the salary schedule.
The groups reached an impasse during mediation and then filed for a fact finding, which involved a representative from the Department of Labor hearing presentations from both sides and then producing a report.
According to the National Education Association, fact finding meetings are used during an impasse when there is a stalemate in collective bargaining. The fact finder then makes recommendations on contract issues that neither side must accept.
Danny Trent of the Department of Labor attended an approximately four-hour meeting with both sides to hear facts from each before making his recommendations.
In Trent’s report, he determined the primary issue between the parties was the specific dollar amount increase to the base salary and said there was little disagreement between the parties about the facts underlying the issue.
The report also said Eudora ranks near the bottom for base salary in comparison to peer districts like Tonganoxie and Louisburg.
He also wrote that the School Board acknowledged the district is not competitive in compensation, citing that the human resources director showed that 30% of educators who left cited the compensation package as a factor in their leaving.
The district currently has a contingency reserve of $110,000. This is something the board is working to increase in order to address long-term stability. The fact finder wrote in conclusion that the district is operating in “alarmingly low” reserves and ultimately recommended the parties agree on the compensation and benefits package proposed during mediation – which added $1,000 to the base salary.
The fact finder said the recommendation was based primarily on the district’s financial situation, and said statements by the board indicated a plan is being developed to address the “underlying financial and cash flow problems, along with the rather uncompetitive compensation packages available to district educators.”
The fact finder said involving the Eudora National Education Association in this planning “may go a long way toward restoring the trust that clearly has been lost.”
The document also said “there appears to be an attitude in this negotiation that the ENEA positions are simply ‘unreal.’ Such a suggestion is in no way helpful to your process. From the perspective of Eudora educators who are compensated at a rate that even the BOE [School Board] appears to believe is low in the relevant market, their concern is very real.”
After four sessions of negotiations, one mediation, a fact finding and then a final session, the board ratified the new contract unanimously Monday night. The contract includes $1,040 to the base, including the additional step for veteran teachers, 15 days of paid parental leave, an increase to the leave cap from 60 to 90 days, the adoption of a revised supplemental schedule minus the experience factor, and step and column movement on the salary schedule.
The bargaining unit voted 66% yes to 34% no to ratify the final changes before the vote moved on to the School Board.
The final agreement does not include the $10 to health insurance’s monthly defined benefit. This means 34% of new money is being spent on the bargaining unit. The total cost of the compensation package is $246,818.
With the new contract, which is retroactive, the base salary will be $44,540 for the 2024-25 school year.
Following the meeting, Superintendent Stu Moeckel and board President Mark Chrislip said they’re glad to have a contract set.
“We’re really excited to finalize this process and really thankful for the work of our ENEA team and negotiations team,” Moeckel said.
Chrislip helped represent the board during the negotiations process.
“I’m glad that we have a contract and feel like it’s a good contract. We look forward to ongoing success in the district,” Chrisip said.
Reach reporter Sara Maloney at [email protected].
