Schools

D204 Teachers Will Get Salary Increase if Contract Approved

Teachers will get a salary increase for this year as well as next school year if new contract is approved.

teachers will see a 2 percent increase in salary this year as well as a 2.89 percent increase next year if a proposed new contract is approved, according to District 204.

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The District 204 Board of Education and the Indian Prairie Education Association have reached a tentative agreement on a two-year contract for teachers. Superintendent Kathy Birkett described the agreement as a collaborative effort that takes into consideration the financial challenges presented by today's economy, according to a district press release.

The contract calls for teachers to receive cost of living increases in line with inflation in exchange for a series of salary and benefit reforms, including:

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  • The elimination or reduction of retirement health care benefits for teachers retiring under this contract.
  • The reduction of paid benefits for part-time tenured employees.
  • A freeze on stipends paid to teachers for extra duties such as coaching and clubs.

The contract also includes $987,849 in savings from changes to health care benefits. The cost of living increases, including increases related to experience and education, will be 2.13 percent for the 2012-13 school year and 2.89 percent in 2013-14, according to the news release.

The District 204 president said the district's financial issues were kept in mind during the bargaining process.

"The IPEA bargaining team worked tirelessly to reach an agreement that was fair to its members and was mindful of the financial issues facing the district," District 204 president Val Dranias said in the release.

Indian Prairie Education Association's members will vote on the contract on Friday, Aug. 31. The district will post an update on its website, once the voting concludes on Friday.

If approved, the Board of Education will vote on the contract at a meeting on Sept. 4 at 6:30 p.m. 

In June, the Board of Education approved a two-year agreement for its clerical and support staff. The Indian Prairie Classified Association's contract also includes a sunset of retirement health care benefits and $186,000 in savings from the implementation of a more efficient medical plan. 

The terms of the contract called for IPCA members to see cost of living increases of 2.41 percent for the 2012-13 school year and 2.89 percent in 2013-14.

The Board of Education is also expected to vote on cost of living increases for administrators at its Sept. 4 meeting.  The proposal includes a sunset of retirement benefits and calls for administrators to see a 2 percent increase in 2012-13 and a 2.5 percent increase in 2013-14.


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