A new three-year contract for Arlington public-school teachers calls for an overall increase of 2.5 percent, with a restructuring of the salary table in the first year, and 2-percent increases in the second and third years.
The new pact was announced Thursday, June 21, in a joint news release from the union and administration, three days after union members ratified it.
School Committee Chair Kirsi Allison-Ampe and Siobhan Foley, AEA negotiations chair and first vice president, announced that the Arlington Education Association (AEA) and the School Committee had come to an agreement on a contract, which will begin Sept. 1. The two parties met over the course of three months with the shared goal of achieving an agreement before the close of the school year.
The final vote by AEA members on Monday, June 18, at Arlington High School was 153-4-1, according to the tally on the union’s website.
By the following day, at least one union leader and a member of the administration declined to comment, saying the union and administration had agreed to a joint news release.
The two bodies also agreed to form two joint committees: one committee will negotiate the provisions of the new educator evaluation regulations for implementation in September 2013, and the other committee will review and analyze data on the workload, caseload, roles, and responsibilities of Special Educators and Related Service Providers.
Following a trend in many area towns, the new agreement will see the school year starting a bit earlier for both teachers and students. Beginning in the 2013-2014 school year, the two teacher days before the opening of school for pupils will be the Wednesday and Thursday immediately prior to Labor Day. The first day of school for students will then move to the Tuesday after Labor Day, except for Kindergarten. This will give the District more flexibility in meeting the state required number of school days in years with multiple snow days or other weather related closings.
The joint news release said the contract was made possible by the June 2011 tax override and the positive financial impact of the Town and School employees moving to the GIC for health insurance.
“The entire school community expresses its appreciation for the contributions of the town’s residents and employees,” the release said, “contributions which have enabled the schools to maintain current services and to begin restoring some essential positions that were cut in previous years.”
Representatives of the administration and union have been asked to comment about how the new contract benefits employees.
Allison-Ampe was among those and said in a statement June 21:
“Speaking for the School Committee, we are very happy to have reached this agreement. The process was very collaborative, it followed the timeline that was set, and within that timeline, there was great discussion on multiple issues of importance to both sides. We were able to address pay scales, calendar issues and other aspects which have been sticking points in the past. It created new Joint committees to work out teacher evaluations and for special education caseloads and responsibilities.
“To me, these joint committees are indicative of the best part of this contract and its process: how this contract begins an era of School Committee members, teachers, and administration working collaboratively together for good of our students and the improvement of the schools.”
Foley, an AEA first vice president, wrote June 21:
“After the last contract, we [the School Committee and the union] made a promise to come up with a contract by June of 2012. We did it. The process was a good one. There was respect, civil argument, and a mutual commitment to try and honor the excellent performance of Arlington teachers.”
AEA President Ron Colosi Jr. has not responded. He has not done so since October 2010.
Union salary scales, 2008-2012 | Current contracts (those in effect before Sept. 1, 2012)
This story was published at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, June 21, 2012, and updated the next day. It was also updated June 24 to clarify the copy and headline, to report that the 2.5-percent increase was in the first year of the contract, not overall.
