Leaders of the local teachers union are not endorsing a tentative contract deal with the Wichita school district.
Negotiators for the district and United Teachers of Wichita (UTW) announced the tentative deal on Tuesday. A separate executive board for the union voted to present the deal to teachers with no recommendation, rather than suggest teachers approve or reject it.
The neutral stance from leaders could reflect mixed feelings about the deal, which was brokered by a federal mediator. The mediator was called in after the district and the union declared a stalemate in their talks.
The deal includes a 1.5% raise for all teachers and certified staff members, like counselors and school nurses. There is an additional 1.25% bonus for those who are unable to advance in the district’s “steps and tracks” system, which offers additional pay based on education and years of experience.
As part of the deal, the district would up its contributions to employee healthcare plans, while rates would stay the same for employees.
“So there [would] not be an increase. We're hearing across the state a lot about insurance costs,” said Katie Laske, president of UTW. “That will stay the same in this agreement.”
The proposed contract would also ease graduation obligations for teachers, offer additional pay for hard-to-fill positions, and increase collaborative planning time.
“There's also going to be a planning time committee established, and so we'll examine planning time and make recommendations for next year to the Board of Education on how we can get extra time for our teachers,” Laske said.
Within the union is an assembly made up of stewards from each school in the district. On Monday, Laske said the assembly will vote whether to agree with the executive board’s neutral stance or to recommend a specific vote to teachers.
After that, about 3,700 teachers and other certified staff members will begin voting on the tentative deal. It would take at least 50% of those staff members, plus one more vote, to either approve or reject the proposed contract.
If teachers ratify the proposed contract, it would then go to the Wichita school board for final approval. If they reject the deal, union negotiators will return to the discussion table with the district.
Depending on the timeline and outcome of the vote, teachers’ first paychecks of the new school year could be based on last year’s rates.
