Teacher Contracts Drag On After Legislation Complicates Talks

It used to be there were certain expectations school boards and teacher associations representatives had when sitting down to negotiate new contracts.

Teacher associations would have recently concluded talks in nearby towns to use as a basis for talks; school boards would have an understanding of the public sentiment and recent elections to guide them.

But now that contract negotiations in both local school districts are officially stuck—talks at Watchung Hills Regional are at an impasse and both sides have requested a mediator, while the Warren Township negotiations are awaiting a fact finders report due at the end of December—everyone seems to be looking for a way out through a fog of complication due in no small part, to recent changes limiting tax increases, and setting new requirements for health benefit and pension contributions from teachers, according to representatives of the groups.

"It's significantly different that previous cycles," Warren Township Board of Education negotiator Sue Burman.

The impact the benefit changes can't be underestimated. On the one hand, the law increases the employees contributions from a minimum 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent this year, increasing up to 6 percent at the end of four years.

"Teachers have taken a definite economic hit by this new legislation which has essentially cut their take home pay by a minimum of 2.5 percent in the first year of the the law, and will far exceed that number as employee contributions drastically increase over the next four years," Watchung Hills Education Association negotiator Shelly Lettington said. Her counterpart on the school board, Peter Fallon, said the board recognizes this—but is correspondingly hamstrung by the tax cap law.

Fallon, who noted the new legislation "does create a set of problems," said an added problem at the high school is the 2 percent cap—which is effectively a 1.6 percent cap for Watchung Hills because it's a limit based on tax revenue. Green Brook is not part of the school district's tax base, so its contribution to education costs is not included—limiting increases. "That's a difficulty we have with having a sending district," Fallon said.

Fallon, an experienced negotiator, added he used to be able to begin negotiations knowing what the district could roughly afford, in terms of salary increases, benefits and perks. Now, he said he doesn't know how to anticipate the impact of increased health care costs, employee contributions and tax caps over the next several years.

"I think that has a great impact impact on negotiations," he said.

Then, there are the intangible impacts the legislative battle has had on the talks. During the spring, a pitched battle was underway between Gov. Chris Christie and the state's teacher associations which left a bittle taste in mouths of many.

"I think we are looking at a situation where the teachers feel as though they have been villified by our governor and the media, they feel as though they are not valued as professionals, and this reduction in our take home pay has only served to validate these feelings," Lettington said.

Burman agreed, noting, "the way this all came down" left teachers feeling unappreciated.

"Just because we haven't reached a settlement doesn't mean we don't appreciate the teachers," Burman added. "It's unprecedented and things keep changing."

No matter how difficult the process, however, everyone is in agreement on the need for resolution, and to maintaining the educational quality in the schools.

"Our goals have always been to create the optimal working conditions that are in the best interests of the members, the students, and this school district," Warren Township Education Association President Fran Blabolil said.

A meeting set for today for negotiators working on the Warren Township School District contract may provide some movement towards that end, with a new proposal being out forward by the WTEA.