Picket sign-toting San Benito High School teachers demonstrated
yesterday in front of the school’s administration building to show
their frustration after working without a contract for almost a
year.
”
I want a contract that is fair for everyone,
”
said Mary Maio, a multi-media and video production teacher at
SBHS.
Hollister – Picket sign-toting San Benito High School teachers demonstrated yesterday in front of the school’s administration building to show their frustration after working without a contract for almost a year.
“I want a contract that is fair for everyone,” said Mary Maio, a multi-media and video production teacher at SBHS.
Negotiators say the main sticking points remain salary and health benefits for teachers and other school employees. In 2000, teachers and school district negotiators worked out a three-year contract that ended on June 30, 2003. A revised one-year contract was agreed to in 2003.
With graduation looming, teachers are anxious to get a contract for next year, California Teachers Association President Clete Bradford said. Bradford said that the school district plans to cut benefits for teachers next year without providing salary increases.
“I haven’t had a pay raise in two years,” Special Education teacher Nina Mongiello said. “Not even for cost of living adjustments.”
Mongiello said she feels that the teachers union has the support of students at San Benito High School, but needs support from the entire community.
“We are out here today to communicate our frustration with the district negotiations,” SBHS teacher Mario Ferrito said.
Although the teachers have the right to strike, neither school district officials nor teachers feel that such an action is likely or necessary.
San Benito School District Superintendent Jean Burns Slater said that she is not worried about the possibility of a strike because the school district has a good relationship with its teachers.
“Every day I hope that an agreement will be reached,” Slater said. “I was a teacher for 18 years and I understand the pressures that teachers face.”
Bradford asserted that the school is operating at a surplus and that the school district is not passing on the excess money to the teachers.
“We are not even getting the COLA (cost-of-living adjustment) funds provided by the state,” Bradford said.
He also charged that the school district has been postponing negotiations and not agreeing to requests to meet on weekends.
Steve Delay, the district’s Director of Finance and Operations, conceded that there is money left over at the end of the year, but only because the school cannot run a deficit.
“We don’t want to bankrupt the district. We have managed our budget conservatively,” Delay said.
Typically, a cut in benefits is the result of a school district being broke, said the CTA’s Bradford. Since the school district is not running a deficit, the excess money, especially the funds earmarked by the state for COLA, should be passed on to the teachers.
In order to maintain the current level of health benefits for teachers, it would cost the school district 35 percent more this year than it did last, Slater said. During the 2004-2005 school year the district contributed $11,258 to each employees health benefit plan, she said.
Currently teachers do not contribute to their own health benefit plans – and they’d like to keep it that way, Bradford said.
“Healthy teachers means healthy schools,” Ferrito said.
While many of the teachers feel like they are not receiving the health benefits and salaries they deserve, the administration disagrees.
“Even in these economic times, we have treated all employees fairly,” said finance director Delay.
Superintendent Slater also pointed out that teachers work from 8:10am to 3:05pm, 6.25 hours a day with a 30-minute lunch, 186 days a year.
“Anybody who knows teachers, knows that that they work more that 6.25 hours a day,” said lead CTA negotiator and social sciences teacher Chuck Schallhorn.
English teacher Tom Rooth said that if teachers only worked during their 6.25 classroom hours, nothing would get done.
“If we only worked 31.25 hours a week, we would not be able to be effective teachers,” Rooth said. “That would mean that we never graded tests, prepared lesson plans or took the time to contact the parents of struggling students.”
Slater later clarified her remarks. “Teachers are not paid on an hourly basis. They are paid as a professional on a salary. There are always responsibilities beyond their contracted day.”
Delay predicated that if the state does not change something, the school district will have to start deficit spending within two to three years. Both Delay and Slater believe that the district has provided fair salary increases for employees. Additionally, Slater said that teachers receive excellent benefits.
Although they disagree, both the teachers and school district officials said that they are committed to negotiating a fair contract.
“We want a contract that is fair,” said Mark Fisher, and art teacher at the school. “We need a contract that pays us for the hours we put in and includes a good health plan.”
Delay said the school district will continue to negotiate in good faith. Both sides have said that they are looking forward to a rapid resolution.
Brett Rowland covers education for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or [email protected]
