Huntley schools, teachers nearer to deal

Huntley Unit District 158 and the district's teachers union have moved closer to reaching a deal and avoiding a strike after a Tuesday bargaining session that ended shortly before midnight, according to the district.

The session came one day after the union served the district with a 10-day intent-to-strike notice.

At Tuesday's meeting, the district proposed a contract that makes significant movement on the major items holding up contract talks -- salary, health insurance and retirement benefits.

"We presented a complete proposal to the (Huntley Education Association) with substantive increases, including salary, medical insurance, extracurriculars and other contract items," said District 158 board member Larry Snow, the district's chief negotiator.

The district asked the union to respond with a counteroffer by Thursday so district officials can consider the offer at a Thursday night closed session, Snow said.

Both sides view Friday as the last day to reach an agreement if a contract is to be in place by the time all teachers return to work Aug. 21.

Aug. 22 is the first day teachers can go on strike, according to the McHenry County Regional Office of Education. Classes resume Aug. 25.

District and union officials said they were hopeful they would be able to reach a deal on Friday.

"We're optimistic," Snow said.

A state labor official said while intent-to-strike notices are not uncommon, it's rare for teachers to actually go on strike.

"These things are rarely litigated," said Holly Higgins Kelly, general counsel for the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board. "These things are sort of strategic, and you use them to leverage your dispute."

Although the district characterized Tuesday's meeting as "productive," the sides have yet to reach tentative agreement on a single issue, Snow said.

"We narrowed some issues, but there were no formal tentative agreements signed," Snow said.

Union officials said earlier this week that the sides had informally reached agreement on some items.

"There are noneconomic items that have been agreed on, but not economic items," union co-president Julie Hunter said Tuesday.

Snow would not offer any details of the district's latest proposal but said it wouldn't require the district to deficit spend.

The district says the union's latest offer would increase teacher compensation 30 percent over three years. The union has not responded to this claim.

The current contract expired June 30.

The sides started meeting in February and have been meeting with federal mediators since the beginning of June.

District officials haven't yet decided how they will respond to the union's request to bargain on a district policy governing fund balances, Snow said.

The union filed the demand on Monday, saying the policy, which states the district should have year-end fund balances equal to 25 percent of operating expenses, would take away money from teachers.

The district says the issue is outside the scope of contract negotiations.

It's not clear if state labor laws and relevant case law require the district to bargain on the issue.

"You would think traditionally that's something that management determines," Higgins Kelly said.

But she added, "The board hasn't addressed that. The board has not ruled on it or anything even close to it."