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Highlands Today

District Preps For Mediation On Teachers Contract

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By MARC VALERO | Highlands Today

Published: October 6, 2007

SEBRING — Please check back soon for the 2007/2008 Instructional Salary Schedule, the School Board of Highlands County's Web site states on its salary page.

Unable to reach a tentative contract agreement during the summer, the school district and teachers union are hoping to break the impasse with a second attempt at mediation on Oct. 10.

In preparation for the mediation, the school board conducted a closed executive session on contract bargaining Tuesday following its regular meeting.

The board reviewed the latest budget information from the state, School Board Chairwoman Donna Howerton said Wednesday. Regarding state education funding, "we are trying to be cautious about the upcoming year [2008-09], which could be worse."

Teachers Union President Stephen Picklesimer learned of the board's special session at Tuesday's regular school board meeting.

"I would hope they are working toward looking at what new money may be able to be offered to us," he said. The teachers' negotiating team will meet this weekend to review the budget numbers.

Mike Averyt, assistant superintendent of business/operations said, prior to the resumption of negotiations, "we wanted to make sure the board was aware what we are going to present to the union."
Picklesimer said he met with Superintendent Wally Cox on Monday to adjust the salary grid to reflect the latest budget information. The grid is tool to help calculate the cost of salaries.

Cox gave the negotiating team a new grid to work with, which had a better cost for the teachers' union, freeing up about $400,000 to $450,000, Picklesimer said.

Meanwhile the Educational Support Personnel Association has been waiting for a tentative agreement on the teachers' contract before starting its own negotiations with the district.

Mike Bernier, the area representative of the state teachers' union and a negotiator for the support personnel, suggested giving the support personal their step increase now.

Educational Support personnel move up pay steps incrementally for each year of service with the district, he explained at the regular school board meeting.

"Ordinarily it's not a real big deal, but right now support people, through no fault of their own and certainly no fault of the union, are sitting back having to wait for all this dust to settle before they can begin to bargain their contract," Bernier said. The district should consider implementing the step increase prior to collective bargaining.

There was no comment on Bernier's suggestion.
Picklesimer said he asked Cox about providing teachers with their "step" pay increase, but Cox told him that based on past practices during contract deadlocks, the school district has not provided the step increase prior to a contract agreement.

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