District 203, teachers open contract talks
Naperville Unit District 203 has begun negotiating a new contract with its teachers union.
Talks began Tuesday for a new deal to replace the one scheduled to expire June 30.
School board President Mike Jaensch said the school board hopes to maintain a positive relationship with teachers while also addressing budgetary issues.
"We're looking for a contract that reflects the economic times as we move forward," Jaensch said. "Everybody is fully aware of where the economy is and we're taking that into account and expect the union is too."
Dave Griffith, president of the Naperville Unit Education Association that represents about 1,350 teachers, agreed.
"I think that this set of negotiations will be reflective of the current situation," he said.
Neither side would go into detail about what specific provisions they would like to see in the contract. Asked if raises are a possibility, Jaensch said he is not ruling anything in or out.
The current contract gave teachers average salary increases of 3.8 percent this school year and last.
The starting salary for a teacher with a bachelor's degree and no experience is $42,808. A teacher with a master's degree plus 54 hours of additional college credit and 22 years of experience makes $105,278.
At least two and possibly three more negotiating sessions are scheduled this week.
No school board members are sitting at the bargaining table. The board has chosen to have attorney Robb Cooper and some of the district's senior staff members handle negotiations.
"We think keeping the board in an oversight role, which is ultimately what our role is, is the way to go," Jaensch said. "We don't get involved in day-to-day operations either, but we give guidance as appropriate."
Both sides say it's too soon to predict how long talks will take. Griffith said he would like to move quickly.
"Everybody is focused on getting this done so we can go back to our job of teaching the kids," he said.
District 203 also will be negotiating with two additional unions this year - support staff and custodians. Those negotiations have not begun.