D-158 strike, day 2: Despite new negotiations, classes canceled again
By AMBER KROSEL - akrosel@nwherald.com
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| District 158 teachers and staff walk the picket line along Square Barn Rd and Academic Drive in Huntley on Monday morning. The D158 teachers union turned down a final offer from the school board and went on strike after more than 40 hours of negotiations during the weekend. Classes for more 8,000 district stdents have been cancelled. Shaun Sartin - ssartin@nwherald.com
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HUNTLEY – Classes were canceled today for all students attending District 158 as teacher contract negotiations concluded Monday night without an agreement.
District officials said they decided that parents should be notified of the cancellation by 9 p.m. Monday even as talks continued. Talks ended at 10:30 p.m.
A rotating group of about 35 teachers walked along Square Barn Road on Monday, getting honks from passing cars and mostly cheers and thumbs up.
Teachers were unwilling to answer questions from the news media, but chatted with friends while carrying signs reading, “If you can read this, thank a teacher” and “My step and lane should remain.”
Teachers union representative did not return repeated phone calls Monday requesting specifics about the contract negotiations.
Before the strike Monday, both teachers union leaders and school board members met for more than 40 hours over the weekend in an urgent effort to come to a tentative contract agreement to avoid a strike. But union leaders early Monday had rejected what school board members indicated for all teachers to be a cumulative 17.8 percent salary increase over the life of a new three-year contract.
Board member Tony Quagliano said the sides were only $25,000 off from reaching a deal Sunday night.
“We were probably giving away too much, but in the end it wasn’t enough,” Quagliano said.
“I thought there was hope there wouldn’t be a strike up until the last hour,” board President Shawn Green added. “Today is one lost day’s pay for the entire membership, and that’s a shame.”
The two sides met Monday starting at 6 p.m., parting at 10:30 p.m. without coming to a tentative agreement.
Classes were canceled Monday and will remain so today. Another negotiation session with a federal mediator, who has been sitting in on meetings since teachers contracts expired in June, was scheduled for 5 p.m. today.
The strike was made official among the teachers at 12:10 a.m. Monday, according to the Huntley Education Association’s Web site. However, board members said they didn’t find out about the strike themselves until 3:15 a.m. when they checked the union’s site.
Instant Alert deadlines were pushed back twice Sunday to allow for extra time to negotiate, and many of the 8,200 students’ families didn’t discover that school was canceled until a 5:30 a.m. phone call.
“We couldn’t reach an agreement,” Hunter said early Monday of the decision to strike.
According to a news release sent by union leaders at 3:49 a.m. Monday, the school board “has forced us to call this strike.”
Union representatives did not comment further Monday on details of the teachers’ decision, but previously have given general statements that compensation and retirement benefits comparable with neighboring districts continued to be significant items. Tentative agreements on other issues, such as family health insurance and extracurricular pay, had been reached over the weekend.
Board members said they’d conceded on many contract items, including some of the 47 of 59 points that were tentatively agreed upon in the past few days.
Union leaders turned down a board-suggested three-year “halfway” compromise offering each on-schedule teacher more than a 5 percent raise every contract year, the board said. Those in the top-tier previously scheduled to get a 2 percent raise would be bumped to receive 4 percent the first year and 3.5 percent in years two and three.
Green said step and lane movement still would be in effect with a fixed step or service year increase of 3.5 percent, which was under the terms of the old contract.
“All the steps are still there except for the people who are maxed out, or off the schedule,” Green said.
This, along with individual lane changes – increases in a teacher’s continuing education credits – would result in a cumulative salary increase of 17.8 percent for all teachers. Quagliano said this number was calculated by adding up the sum of the three-year increases for all and dividing by the beginning base year.
Retirement contributions also would be considered a part of raises, the board said.
Board members said they asked the union to defer the strike early Monday to let negotiations continue, but leaders refused, according to a news release. Union representatives in turn said they’d be willing to meet at any time to reach a deal.
Once the strike began, board members prepared for the possibility that it could last beyond a few days.
“We have no intention of having the kids sit at home for weeks on end just because a contract can’t get worked out,” Green said. “We have every intention of getting kids back in school as soon as possible. Our first choice is to have that be with the 577 members of the [Huntley Education Association].”
Green said the board also did not plan to make up days lost to a strike.
As teachers walked picket lines Monday, Illinois Education Association President Ken Swanson arrived to carry signs and offer a quick pep talk.
“You have the support of all of the 130,000 [Illinois Education Association] members,” Swanson said. “Hopefully, by Wednesday, you’ll all be back here doing what you’d rather be doing.”
– Northwest Herald reporter Tim Kane contributed to this story.
Sticking points
The following issues are the major points that remained unsolved Monday in District 158 contract negotiations:
– Amounts of retirement contributions included in the total salary package.
– Amount of sick leave for teachers in years one through four of service.
– Extracurricular compensation percentage increases per contract year.
– Salary mobility, meaning a new hire’s placement on the salary schedule versus being paid by former experience.
– Decreases in calendar days each school year.
– Certified staff day, meaning the required length of child supervision before class.
– Language on raises accumulating near retirement.
Source: District 158 board member Tony Quagliano
