(August 13, 2012) The Westerville City School District Board of Education and Westerville Education Association (WEA) today ratified a successor collective bargaining agreement that begins September 1, 2012, and remains in effect through the 2014-15 school year.
The three-year agreement includes compensation concessions in years one and two, provides a cost of living and step increases for additional experience in year three, and retains related arts specialist positions and aide positions to allow teacher planning time. The contract also incorporates language to manage new teacher evaluation requirements and ensure that any future reductions in force meet new state requirements.
“We believe this is a very fair and equitable contract that addresses several critical issues brought to the table by both the WEA and Board of Education,” said Board President Kevin Hoffman.
Referencing the WEA’s decision in July 2011 to give back a portion of its contractually-obligated cost of living adjustment and step increases, Hoffman said, “We truly appreciate our teachers for once again stepping up and agreeing to concessions that will get our district through these difficult financial times. This marks the second time in slightly more than a year that our teachers have offered concessions to their contract that help our district keep its financial promises to the community.”
The first two years of the contract include a freeze on both the base salary and step increases that teachers receive for additional experience. The first year of the contract also begins a phase-out of the Board’s contribution to Health Savings Accounts (HSA), which began in 2006 to help employees transition to a high-deductible insurance plan. Prior contracts called for the Board to contribute 50 percent of the deductible into an HSA with the employee paying the remaining 50 percent. Under the new agreement, WEA members will pay 75 percent of the deductible amount in year one, and in years two and three, will fund 100 percent of their HSA contributions.
The third year of the contract includes a 2 percent cost of living adjustment to base pay, as well as credit for 1.5 years of experience on the step schedule. Approximately half of the WEA’s 975 members are eligible for a step increase in any given year.
The final components of the contract address new state requirements for the way teachers will be evaluated using value-added data, and how future reductions in force will be determined through the use of teacher evaluations instead of seniority.
According to Hoffman, the Board’s ability to retain specialists and aides positions was made possible by ongoing district austerity measures and the WEA’s agreement to eliminate Board contributions toward members’ health savings accounts.
“Keeping these professionals in our schools ensures that specialized content is delivered by those who know it best,” Hoffman said. “It also means that our teachers have the ability to collaborate on ways that best to meet the diverse needs of our 15,000 students.”