TEACHERs STRIKE update ( huelga d Maestros en Waukegan ) W A U K E G A N P U B L I C S C H O OL An Open Letter to the Community from Board President Bill Clinton and Superintendent Posted on 04/03/2014 Dear Parents, Guardians, Teachers and Community Members: We are writing today to provide clarity around a topic that has undoubtedly been on all of your minds in recent weeks – the proposed teachers’ strike in Waukegan Community Unit School District #60. As you know, for the last 10 months, the Board of Education and the Waukegan Teachers’ Union have engaged in negotiations to reach an agreement over salary and benefit compensation. In early March, the Teachers’ Union filed intent to strike on April 16 if an agreement is not reached. This does not guarantee a strike will occur, and the District questions the legality of any work stoppage due to the fact that teachers’ current contract runs through June 30, 2014. From the outset, please know that we value all of our employees and are dedicated to ensuring everyone has a fair contract. As with all of our union contracts, the Board remains committed to continuing negotiations with the Teachers’ Union and collaboratively reaching an agreement that benefits both parties, while still maintaining long-term financial stability for the educational programs of the District. The economic impact of the Teachers’ requests are so high however, that they threaten the District’s long-term fiscal solvency and make it difficult to manage the District and its educational programs throughout the remainder of this year and next. That said, the District has done everything in its power during this negotiation process to exhibit fairness and meet the teachers more than halfway. We revised our final offer of $1.82 million in salaries and benefits to a package of $3.69 million, an amount reflected in part by removing increases in insurance premiums from the negotiations. We also accepted the Union’s proposal for salary increases related to tenure, or steps, and for education earned beyond a bachelor’s degree, known as lane movement. The Board’s offer equates to an average compensation increase of 4.75 percent over last year. While the Union dismisses this offer as insulting and demands an even higher raise, the Board believes its offer is fair, and even generous, in these difficult financial times. The Board’s full proposal can be viewed on the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board website, under the “Impasse Final Offers” tab, or at wps60.org. We continue to work toward a resolution that avoids disruption of the education of our children, because if a strike does move forward, Waukegan schools will unfortunately have to be closed for the duration of such job action. As we work to resolve this issue, we want to stress to parents that they should try to PREPARE accordingly and have alternate childcare plans in place ahead of time. We will do our best to minimize a strike’s disruptive effects upon our students and school families, and we apologize in advance for any inconvenience this proposed work stoppage may cause. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this uncertain time. Sincerely, Waukegan Community Unit School District # 60 Anita M. Hanna Board President Donaldo R. Batiste, Ph.D. Superintendent of Schools
Posted on: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 17:08:13 +0000
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