U-46 teachers balk at tentative contract

A group of Elgin Area School District U-46 teachers distributed fliers at an informational session Monday urging union members to vote "no" on the tentative teacher contract.

The handout focused on issues of class size, health insurance and teacher evaluations as well as pay raises in the second and third years of the contract.

The flier criticized the new agreement for failing to offer any real fixes for large class sizes; for tying pay raises to the rate of inflation plus 1 percent, rather than nailing down an exact number; and for creating a new evaluation system that "is very ambiguous."

The flier also claimed that parts of the contract are too ambiguous to support.

"A no vote does not mean a vote for a strike. It just means we will go back to the bargaining table," the flier said.

If members do reject the agreement, Elgin Teachers Association President Tim Davis said he would survey membership and then assemble a new bargaining team to try to address members concerns.

Davis said he could ask current negotiating team members to return to the bargaining table, but they would not be obligated to do so.

If that group reaches an impasse, the district would bring in a mediation team.

Only after all of those avenues were exhausted would the union prepare for a strike, Davis said.

Signing the flier "concerned ETA members," the teachers accused Davis of "spinning" the recent vote by union leaders to accept the tentative contract as a victory.

In fact, Davis acknowledged that union leaders accepted the contract by a narrow majority -- 73 yes votes, 65 no votes and two abstentions -- and said he could not predict how the union's 2,400 members would vote by secret ballot on Oct. 15.

About 275 members attended Monday's informational session, Davis said Tuesday.

A second information session is scheduled from 4 to 7 p.m. Oct. 14 at the South Elgin High School auditorium.