Kaneland board, union at odds over teacher pay raises
The Kaneland Education Association wants higher pay - especially for new teachers - in the next contract, and is asking residents to send union-written questions and comments to board members.
And an assistant chief negotiator for the union has accused the board of preparing "overblown" budgets with "over-bloated" lists of expenditures and underestimated revenues to justify not raising teachers' pay.
"Over the last five years you have used that over-bloated budget to guilt the KEA into accepting the lowest pay raises in the area. You have threatened to lay off teachers, you have threatened to shut down all sporting activities, you have allowed class sizes to rise by refusing to hire more teachers. None of these things needed to happen," Tim Larsen told the board Monday night. " ... I charge you, morally, with being terrible stewards of the community's money."
The school board, in turn, sent a "status update" to parents and the media and reiterated its desire to "promote the best learning experience possible" while being fiscally responsible. It listed the salary increases for the next three years in new contracts for the Geneva, Indian Prairie and Yorkville school districts, all lower than the 5.42 percent per year Kaneland is offering.
Negotiators have met more than 25 times since March - and will meet Thursday - according to the district, and utilized a federal mediator since September. In November the union filed an intent to strike notice but cannot strike unless an official impasse is declared and both sides' final offers are posted on the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board website. The last contract expired in June.
The school board said in its release it is willing to meet with the union over the holiday break if needed.
Union's position
On the union's Facebook page and website it says, among other things:
• The school board did not have to lay off teachers or freeze pay in 2010 to avoid a budget deficit.
• The district could have afforded to give teachers a raise in the first year of a new contract in 2012.
• The board is asking for a waiver to give new superintendent Todd Leden "a substantial raise."
• Increased property tax dollars haven't been spent, instead the board has socked away $7 million.
Check that
• In January 2010, the union refused to consider a pay freeze. District officials said they were anticipating a projected deficit of at least $2.6 million in operating revenue. It then notified 30 percent of the teachers they could be laid off. The union then agreed to delay an overall 5.6 percent pay raise for a year.
• In November the board waived the state set 5 percent limit on increases in administrative spending for the 2015-16 fiscal year. The total for the executive administration services line - which is the superintendent and his secretary - went up 54.2 percent over the previous year's spending. Julie-Ann Fuchs, the assistant superintendent for business, said that is because in fiscal year 2015, the district had a part-time fill-in superintendent, so they spent less than normal.
• A state report shows that in 2012, 2013 and 2014 the district spent about 96 cents of every dollar it took in. And in 2014, it had 240 days' worth of operating cash on hand. The state gives its best grade to districts that have 180 days or more of cash on hand.