STATEMENT FROM JAY LEVIN, GREAT VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD SPOKESMAN FOR
TEACHER CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS
On June 17th, we met with the Great Valley Education Association, the union representing our district’s teachers, for another negotiation session. Despite several hours of discussion, I am disappointed to report that little progress has been made on the remaining outstanding issues of salaries, benefits and teacher preparation time.
Given the economic climate our residents face and the needs of our growing school district, the School Board Negotiation Team has focused in recent negotiation sessions on meeting the goals it established this past winter. Our proposal is designed to meet the time-related needs of students and teachers in a way that supports delivery of our educational program, offer teachers competitive salaries comparable to those in surrounding districts and in the community, institute a cost-sharing provision to reduce the impact of health care costs and support initiatives that make Great Valley a positive place to work and learn.
Unfortunately, the union has not approached contract negotiations with these same goals in mind. So that the community understands where each side stands on these issues, I would like to share with you now some highlights of both proposals.
On June 17th, The School Board presented a revised four-year salary proposal that increased what we had previously offered the union. Increases would range between 2 and 3.5 percent in each year, and would be tied to the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), so that we may keep raises consistent with what others in our community are receiving. We have also offered a $2,000 stipend each year to teachers who achieve and maintain National Board Certification.
The union, however, is demanding raises of 6.5 percent a year. This adds up to a total of 28.6 percent, compounded over the life of the four-year contract. Under the union’s proposal, a starting teacher with a bachelors degree and no experience would earn over $52,000 and a teacher at the top of the salary schedule would earn over $100,000 by the end of the contract. This is inconsistent with our aim to keep salaries competitive but also comparable to other districts. Nearby West Chester Area School District, for example, settled last fall on salary increases of less than 4 percent.
For health insurance, we have proposed a cost-sharing plan to reduce the impact of sky-rocketing insurance rates. We are offering teachers Personal Choice 10/20/70, with employee contributions that would range from 8 to 14 percent, depending upon a teacher’s salary and the year of the contract. Prescription drug co-pays would be $10 for generic drugs and $20 for brand-name prescriptions. Right now, teachers pay an $8 co-pay for mandatory generic drugs.
The teachers’ union has proposed Personal Choice 5/15/70, a costly plan which is even superior to the plan accepted by the teacher’s union at T/E. Making matters worse, the Great Valley Education Association remains unwilling to contribute toward health insurance costs, despite the fact that this is the norm for most residents in our school district. According to the MidAtlantic Employers’ Association’s 2004 Health Benefits Survey, the majority of employers surveyed in the Philadelphia/New Jersey/Delaware areas indicated that their employees pay 25 to 49 percent of the costs for PPO/POS plans. Once again, the union’s demands clash with our goal of limiting the impact of health insurance costs in the budget.
With regard to the teacher working day, we have proposed adding a half-hour to the school day for a total of eight hours. Adding this half-hour is necessary to ensure that our students receive adequate instructional time, which has become crucial as the district strives to meet requirements for achievement under the No Child Left Behind Act.
The teachers’ union, however, would like the instructional day to remain at 7 ½ hours, with a continuous 60-minute preparation period for every elementary teacher. While we believe preparation time is important for teachers, the union’s proposal is inconsistent with our goal of providing enough time to meet the needs of our students and support the delivery of our academic program.
Throughout our remaining negotiation sessions, we will not lose sight of these goals, and hope that the union will begin to see that these goals are important for both sides to achieve. We remain optimistic that we will be able to report some progress as a result of our next meeting on June 29th.
Again, we encourage the community to continue attending School Board meetings and visiting the district website, www.gvsd.org, for updates. Thank you.