Board votes to unilaterally issue teacher contracts

Teacher contracts issued

The Minot Public School Board voted unanimously Tuesday to unilaterally issue teacher contracts, after months of negotiations failed to resolve an impasse.

District business manager and lead board negotiator Scott Moum said the district office planned to get contracts out electronically to teachers by Tuesday afternoon and they would be due by the end of the business day on July 31.

"It's unfortunate," said Moum. "I don't think either side feels good about this."

"Let's hope for better things next year," said board vice president and board negotiator Laura Mihalick.

"A better financial situation next year," agreed Moum.

The major sticking points in negotiations had been salaries and the language in the district's family sick leave policy.

The board's final offer to teachers, patterned after the recommendation made by the State Education Factfinding Commission that had tried to resolve the impasse, was a $100 increase to the base salary for a beginning teacher. The board also agreed to allow teachers to move up on the salary schedule based on additional education and years of experience. The district will also pay its share of the health insurance increase and cap the employer HSA contributions at the lesser amount of $5,566 or double the single deductible. The cost to the district of the proposal is an additional $1.18 million.

The board had said the district is operating under a budget deficit and cannot afford a higher salary increase for the teachers.

Teachers also wanted to use their allotted family sick leave days to care for an adult child who is not a dependent or carried on their health insurance, as well as for children under 21 and other family members. The board did not budge on that issue, but did change the language in the sick leave policy to allow the sick leave to be used for a child who is a dependent or is still carried under the parent's health insurance. That can include children up until the age of 26. The board also changed the language to allow teachers to use the sick leave days for the catastrophic or life-threatening illness of an adult child who is not on the parent's health insurance. In those cases, medical certification might be asked for.

The board's final proposal also agreed to form a health and safety committee, with members chosen by the board and by the Minot Education Association. That safety committee is not included under the scope of negotiations.

MEA negotiators Amy Neal, Bill Irmen and Lisa Wolf and MEA president Kristi Reinke all expressed disappointment with the outcome of negotiations in a letter to the Minot Daily News on Monday. They said they were willing to continue negotiating, but the board had decided to impose contracts. Salary and the sick leave language remained the main obstacles for them. The entire MEA overwhelmingly rejected the board's offer when the contract proposal was put to an online vote earlier this summer.

In the letter, the teacher negotiators said the board's actions will undoubtedly affect employee morale, but children will still be met with "enthusiastic, smiling, professional educators" when they return to classes in the fall.