The Sun
Sunnyvale's Newspaper

Teachers vote today on contract proposal

Union, district strike deal on pay raise and benefits

By Katherine Petersen

The high school district and the teachers' union signed a tentative agreement Aug. 14 that could put an end to their 18-month contract dispute--and keep teachers off the picket line come the first day of school.

The union's 400 teachers will vote on the agreement Aug. 27 and 28, with a board of trustees vote to follow on Sept. 2.

"We hope the teachers approve the tentative agreement so we can focus on instruction again and begin working more amicably with the union," said Joe Hamilton, the district's new superintendent.

The agreement calls for a retroactive pay raise of 7.41 percent for the 1996-97 school year and an additional increase of at least 5 percent for the 1997-98 school year. A proposal put forth by a neutral fact-finder last spring suggested a 7.05 percent raise for teachers, with additional increases based on revenue.

"This is a small step that made a huge difference psychologically," said George Gredassoff, president of the Fremont Education Association. "The contract may not appear too different on the surface, but all the doomsday language has been removed. I think it's a fair agreement. Over the next few years, our salaries will be more competitive with those of surrounding districts."

Teachers will receive additional pay increases during the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 school years, depending on the district's unrestricted revenue, which comes primarily from property taxes.

"Sixty-six cents of every dollar in unrestricted revenue will go to compensate teachers," Gredassoff said.

The district will continue providing medical benefits, and the union will look into ways to lower health costs. Any savings would be put into the teachers' hands, not into the general fund, Gredassoff said.

Teachers will also have control over the district's reserves. Under the agreement, new reserve accounts may be established only by a state law or with the union's permission, Gredassoff said.

The Fremont Education Association's negotiating team will explain the terms of the agreement and answer teachers' questions at a meeting Aug. 25 at Fremont High School.

"This new proposal clears up any inconsistencies and language in either the fact-finder's proposal or report," Gredassoff said.

Monta Vista High School teacher Gary Post said that while he hasn't seen the details of the contract, the outline looks good.

"It looks acceptable to me from what I've seen," he said. "I think people are so worn out with the negotiating process that I think it should pass barring some hidden disaster, which I don't think is there."

Administration officials will not comment on the terms of the contract until after the union has voted, Hamilton said.

Talks began in late June between the FEA and the administration, shortly after the resignation of former superintendent Mary Panucci.

Teachers showed their displeasure with the administration at the beginning of last year with informational picketing, and in the middle of the year stopped doing extra work such as writing letters of recommendation and advising clubs.

The union presented Panucci with a failing report card two weeks before she resigned.

Panucci's resignation may have spurred the union into the negotiating process again, Gredassoff said.

"If we hadn't take this opportunity to begin talking again, we might have lost the opportunity," he said.

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This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, August 27, 1997.
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