Schools

Threat of EP Teachers Strike Looms

The Evergreen Park teachers union and Dist. 124 fail to reach deal for new teachers contract. Only one more bargaining session scheduled.

The D124 school board and Evergreen Park teachers union were unable to reach a new contract deal Wednesday evening. Both sides will give it one more shot before teachers' threatened walkout date on Oct. 2.

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Wednesday’s meeting broke up around 10:30 p.m., after more than five hours of bargaining. IFT spokesman Dave Comerford said that the Dist. 124 school board and teachers union “aren’t even in the same ballpark” after Wednesday evening’s fruitless talks.

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Both sides declared an impasse last month and issued their best and final offers. The school district and teachers union have been trying to work out a new contract since April. Negotiations are now being handled by a federal mediator.

The Evergreen Park Federation of Teachers Union represents 135 teachers and 70 paraprofessionals from the district’s five public grammar schools. The EPFT belongs to the Southwest Federation of Teachers, Local 943, and are also members of the Illinois Federation of Teachers.

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Comerford said that health insurance benefits are a key sticking point. The school district wants teachers and staff to switch to a new health plan in 2013-14 that would increase members' monthly contributions.

“The costs are so high it would eat into any raises which the union has based on cost of living increases,” Comerford said. “We’d like to see people keep up with the cost of living.”

As has become the union’s custom, teachers staged their rowdiest, protest to date before Wesdnesday's baragining session. Evergreen Park teachers and paraprofessionals lined one city block on the 95th Street side of Central Junior High School. They were joined by teachers from Evergreen Park Community High School and the Chicago Teachers Union.

Members held up signs to passing traffic asking drivers to honk their horns if they supported the elementary school teachers’ demands for a fair contract.

Earlier this month, D124 sent home letters with students informing parents of the school district’s plans in the event of a teachers’ work stoppage. Unlike the Chicago teachers strike, D124 will not be opening any buildings where working parents can drop off their children for educational games and activities during a possible teachers strike.

The school district provided a list of community resources to parents, such as  faith-based, park district and YMCA programs. The letter also included recommendations for educational software and other resources for parents to help children keep up with classes.

Cathy Pliska, mother of an eighth- and fourth-grader, said  she was trying to mobilize other parents into supporting the teachers union. She thought that teachers were getting cheated.

"I think there are a lot of parents out there that really don't have any idea wht the teachers are asking for," Pliska said. "I think once they do they'd realize teachers are only asking for a fair contract that everybody would be 100-percent behind these teachers."

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Another parent who worked worked part-time, said that she and some other moms were trying to cobble together childcare in the event of a teachers strike.

The teachers union is planning another demonstration, this time involving more parents and community members, on Monday at 4:15 p.m. in front of Central Junior High School. The bargaining session will follow.

Following is a statement from the Evergreen Park Federation of Teachers’ bargaining team. D124 officials could not immediately be reached for comment. Patch will post the school district’s response, if any, as soon as it becomes available.

Statement from the Evergreen Park Federation of Teachers bargaining team

The proposal the union currently has on the table is less than what we have in the current contract. Let’s be clear, our proposal already represents a cut for teachers and staff. As we’ve said before, we tried to compromise as much as possible before we made the impasse offer in an effort to reach a settlement.

We still tried to explore concepts at the last 2 bargaining sessions to prevent a strike, but also prevent the deep cuts included the board’s current proposal on the table. We weren’t successful and will be forced to go on strike October 2nd if a tentative agreement can’t be reached before then.

We also need the public to understand that the board’s insurance proposal would eventually push teachers into an untested insurance plan that doesn’t even exist yet. We also want to make sure that insurance costs aren’t so high that our members don’t even keep up with the cost of living or take an unnecessary pay cut.

While the school board has a reserve 3 times what is considered fiscally responsible by state standards, the school board has more than just a fiscal responsibility. They have the responsibility to fill classrooms with the most qualified staff possible. This can’t be done with a salary and benefits package that continues to move downwards and becomes less competitive.

Do you think both sides are doing enough to avoid a teachers strike? Tell us in the comments.


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