U-46 teachers' contract bargaining dates set

Five contract negotiation sessions have been set with Elgin Area School District U-46 and its teachers union, members learned in a recent e-mail.

Bargaining dates are scheduled April 15, 17, 20, 23 and May 6, according to the e-mail. Each bargaining session will be facilitated by an outside lawyer. If a tentative agreement is reached, the union's 2,693 members could vote on the deal as early as late May.

The current three-year contract expires in August.

With U-46 attempting to slash $40 million from next year's budget, district and union officials announced they would be starting contract negotiations several weeks earlier than originally scheduled.

By starting early, and bringing fewer items to the table than in the past, both sides said they hope for a speedy agreement.

The U-46 school board Monday night approved layoffs for more than 1,000 employees -732 of them teachers. That number included all first-, second- and third-year teachers, as well as more than 70 tenured teachers.

Superintendent Jose Torres has said union pay cuts will be part of the conversation explored at the bargaining table.