Tumwater School Board to consider teachers contract

The Tumwater School Board will hold a special meeting at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday to consider a proposed contract with the Tumwater Education Association, the union that represents the district’s nearly 400 teachers.

Union and district officials have not yet disclosed details of the contract. However, Tumwater School Board president Jay Wood said he felt the tentative agreement that the district and union reached was “a positive move.”

“I offer my thanks to the teachers that participated and our administrative staff for their work because it’s a hard process,” Wood told The Olympian.

The district’s teachers have been working without a contract since the beginning of the school year. District and union bargaining teams struck a tentative agreement on May 23 after three sessions with a mediator from the Public Employment Relations Commission. Supplemental compensation for the district’s teachers and planning time for those who work at elementary schools were among the sticking points.

Last Thursday, the union’s members ratified a tentative agreement with the district; of the 325 votes that were cast, 96.3 percent approved the contract, according to union president Tim Voie.

In earlier interviews, Voie said the district’s teachers received “anywhere from $3,500 to $6,500” less than teachers in nearby districts. Salaries are based on a state schedule, but districts can negotiate “TRI pay,” which is compensation for “deemed done” responsibilities outside of teaching hours, including training and meetings. TRI stands for time, responsibility, incentive.

In earlier proposals, the district was offering 22 days for TRI pay for this school year and 24 for next school year; the union had proposed 25 TRI days this year and 29 for next school year. In comparison, teachers in North Thurston Public Schools will receive about 35 TRI days for this school year, and a little more than 36 days worth of TRI pay for next school year.

“We’re not there yet, however,” states a post on the Tumwater Education Association’s Facebook page. “This is a good start, but only a good start! We go back to the table next winter.”

This story was originally published May 31, 2016 at 4:06 PM with the headline "Tumwater School Board to consider teachers contract."