Kaneland teachers insist starting teachers need 6 percent raises
Kaneland school board President Teresa Graue Witt said Tuesday that she agrees with Kaneland teachers that the district should offer "competitive" wages.
But to get there, teachers are asking for 6 percent raises, and the board also must be prudent with taxpayers' money, Witt said.
And she disputed the Kaneland Education Association's assertion that the district has built up enough money in reserves that it could easily accommodate the teachers' requests in a new contract.
Several dozen teachers and a couple of residents used the public-comment portions of Monday's school board meeting to urge the board to approve a "fair and competitive" contract.
Wearing black "KEA United" T-shirts, they spoke of their love of the district and belief that it has become something of a training ground, where young teachers come, work for a few years, then take jobs elsewhere for better pay.
"When is it going to be important to save and retain the high-quality teachers we have? It's (talk about saving money) become hurtful," Kaneland Education Association President Lori Shroka said.
Per its custom, the board did not respond to the comments at Monday's meeting.
But on Tuesday, Witt said, "The board values all of its teachers, and we do have an interest in paying a competitive wage. We understand this is their livelihood and emotions run high in these situations."
Many of the teachers who spoke said Kaneland pay does not attract or retain the best teachers. The current starting pay, for a teacher with no experience and a bachelor's degree, is $37,210. In contrast, beginning teachers in neighboring West Aurora District 129 make $42,991, and Geneva starts at $39,651. The KEA wants starting pay set at $39,500, about 6 percent higher. A teacher with 20 years experience and a master's degree plus 36 hours of postgraduate studies tops out this year at $92,693 in Kaneland. In Geneva, a person with 20 years and a master's degree plus 45 hours makes $90,298.
The teachers said it is not fiscally responsible to invest time in training new teachers, only to see them leave.
According to Kaneland's 2015 state report card, the district's three-year retention rate was 85.4 percent. The state average is 85 percent. Neighboring Geneva retains 92.3 percent. Of other neighboring districts, only Yorkville and Central had lower retention rates: 82.9 percent and 83.4 percent, respectively.
Negotiations resumed Tuesday between the board and the Kaneland Education Association.
The teachers' contract expired June 30.
At a public forum put on last month by the union, representatives said there is about a $500,000 difference between what the district wants and what the union wants. The district says it is offering to pay $3 million more during the next three years, which would provide raises of about 5 percent each year.
The teachers contend the district has more than enough money in its reserves to accommodate the pay suggested by the union. A financial report on the state education board's website indicates the end-of-the-year operating-funds balance grew from $6 million for fiscal year 2010 to $13.4 million in fiscal year 2014. The operating funds include education, transportation, operations-and-maintenance and working-cash funds.
Witt said, however, that much of what the teachers are saying is in reserve is not in the education fund, but in the other funds. Teachers' salaries are paid out of the education fund.
The union issued an intent-to-strike notice Nov. 5. But it can't legally go on strike unless an impasse has been declared and both sides' final offers posted with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board.
Last Friday, the union handed out yard signs to supporters.