“It was quite a long process, but both sides have always had a wonderful working relationship with our teacher’s association and even though the process was long, it was very successful and I think both sides are very happy with the master agreement,” Johnson said.
The agreement, which is effective through August 2015, was ratified Monday night before being approved by the board during a special meeting Wednesday night. Johnson said the full agreement will soon be posted on the school’s website as per state statute.
The major changes, according to Johnson, include the elimination of collective bargaining as per the new state statute. Now, she said the only things negotiated in the contract are salary and benefits, but the agreement also includes a new compensation model. This new model, according to Johnson, is weighted based on how long the employee has been with the corporation – that is, compensation is weighted to the lower end, giving an opportunity for those who just started to increase their salaries at a higher rate. There’s another way to increase wages as well; Johnson explained teachers who are rated as “highly effective” can receive higher compensation.
Of course, Johnson said all of this is dependent on state funding, but she said the corporation is currently in a financial situation allowing them to implement this model, and both sides are happy with how the agreement came out.
