Jessica Cejnar / Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020 @ 5:20 p.m. / Education
Teachers Union Accuses District of Withholding Info From Fact Finder; Arbitrator Recommends 2 Percent Annual Salary Increase Through 2021-22
District staff picket in support of certificated staff on Friday. Photo: Jessica Cejnar
The Del Norte Teachers Association is accusing the local school district of withholding information to a state-appointed arbitrator and says it will continue to fight “for what this community deserves.”
DNTA President Marshall Jones said recommendations from Renée Mayne, a mediator with the California Public Employment Relations Board, is not based on Del Norte Unified School District’s most recent offer.
According to Mayne’s report, which is based on a Dec. 5 hearing and was released to the public on Tuesday, the district is offering to increase all certificated salaries by 1 percent. However, Jones said, in October, DNUSD offered certificated staff an additional 1 percent raise contingent upon enrollment, making the total proposed salary increase to 2 percent.
“They didn’t even mention that to the fact finder,” he told the Wild Rivers Outpost on Wednesday. “That’s not negotiating in good faith in my opinion.”
In her report, Mayne recommended increasing certificated staff salaries by 2 percent effective July 1, 2019. Salaries would then increase by 2 percent annually through 2021-22, according to Mayne’s recommendations.
Certificated salaries in fiscal years 2020-21 and 2021-22 would increase by 0.5 percent if the additional local control funding formula dollars DNUSD receives increases by 3.5 percent from the previous fiscal year. If LCFF dollars to the district increases by 4 percent, certificated staff salaries would increase by an additional 1 percent for fiscal years 2020-21 and 2021-22, according to Mayne’s recommendations.
The Local Control Funding Formula allocates additional state dollars to school districts based on enrollment of English language learners, foster children, homeless children and low-income students.
Mayne recommends 2 percent annual increases in flat-dollar stipends for teachers and certificated staff through 2021-22. As for health insurance premium costs, Mayne recommends keeping things “status quo” for the 2019-2020 fiscal year.
For the fiscal year 2020-21, Mayne recommends increasing the district’s contribution to health premiums by $500. She recommends another $500 annual increase to the district’s health and welfare contributions for certificated staff for the 2021-22 fiscal year.
Mayne also recommends that DNUSD and DNTA form a committee to explore regional and statewide options for health insurance for union members and their families, according to the report.
The Dec. 5 fact finding hearing included mediators representing DNTA and the school district. According to Mayne’s report, the district maintained that its salary increases totaled 16.2 percent for the past five years, outpacing cost of living adjustment and the consumer price index. The district also stated that its salary and benefits are at or above 15 other school districts in Humboldt and Siskiyou counties.
The district representative also stated that its pension costs for teachers were estimated to rise by about 1 percent over the next three years. DNUSD also noted that general fund allocation to classroom salaries and benefits was about $1 million more than the state requirement, according to Mayne’s report.
“The district maintained that its teachers have a very high salary when compared with the relative cost of living in the tri-county area,” the report states. “Further, their educators have a very high total compensation package when compared with other school districts in the region.”
According to Mayne’s report, DNTA responded that the district had allocated 37 percent of its expenditures for classroom salaries in 2014-15, but that allocation dropped to 33 percent in 2018-19. DNTA noted that in addition to receiving a cost of living adjustment of 3.26 percent for 2019-2020, enrollment is rising, which equates to an increase in state funding to the school district based upon average daily attendance.
DNTA noted that the school district receives a one-time payment from the state for special education. Meanwhile, union representatives stated, the district maintains a $5.4 million reserve beyond the minimal amount required by the state.
DNTA also brought up a “crisis” in teacher recruitment and retention, noting that because health premiums are $10,381, an entry-level teacher’s take-home salary is $36,712.
According to DNTA, 27 teachers left the district at the end of the 2018-19 school year. The union stated that two teachers have resigned since the 2019-2020 school year started in August, according to Mayne’s report.
“The union asserted that the district’s retention information represented a 13.5 percent turnover rate in 2018-19 and scoped out to three years, turnover would be about 40 percent,” Mayne’s report states. “Further, the union maintained that the number of non-reelects is evidence of the crisis in attracting and retaining qualified educators; this indicated that the pool of candidates was not strong enough to hire a sufficient number of teachers who would be successful.”
In her report, Mayne stated that DNTA provided more in-depth facts related to issues at impasse and extensive information to back up the reasoning behind their proposals. Mayne further stated that the district's reason for only offering a 1 percent salary increase to teachers wasn’t as persuasive because of the 3.26 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) it received for the 2019-2020 fiscal year.
Mayne noted that though DNUSD is “understandably cautious in its spending,” a statewide and national shortage of teachers is well established.
“The neutral fact finder panel chair finds that the most persuasive information submitted during the fact-finding proceedings were the district’s turnover numbers,” Mayne stated. “Independent of the reasons for the teacher turnover at the district, a 13.5 percent employee turnover rate in one year could adversely affect the performance of an organization.”
According to Mayne’s report, DNTA has been pressing the school district for a 3.54 percent increase in the salary schedule and an increase in flat-dollar stipends of 3.54 percent. DNTA also asked to increase the district’s contribution to health and welfare benefits by $795 per eligible employee.
Mayne’s recommendations are advisory, according to a list of frequently asked questions released by the DNUSD. The district continues to maintain that a teacher strike is premature.
“Strikes are legal in California, but they cannot occur until all steps in the impasse process have been exhausted and contract requirements are met,” the district states. “At this point, it would be illegal for the union to engage in any concerted work stoppage prior to a fact-finders final report being made public and prior to meeting the requirements in the Del Norte Teachers Association contract.”
According to DNTA’s contract, which expires Aug. 31, 2020, the union cannot strike until the school district imposes a last, best and final offer, which has not happened, according to DNUSD.
However, Jones said a district representative told him DNUSD has “no intention of imposing,” which prevents the bargaining process from continuing.
“That’s not in good faith and we can prove that,” Jones said. “And, honestly, I know I’m a teacher, but from what I’m seeing and what I’m hearing from the community, the message is clear about why we’re doing what we’re doing."
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