Teachers union OKs contract

The Omaha Education Association on Tuesday voted in favor of a contract that maintains its members' current health care deductible in exchange for a slightly smaller salary increase than offered in an earlier proposal.

Teachers union members voted 1,365 to 589 — 70 percent to 30 percent — in favor of the agreement. It is the second proposal for the current school year. The first was rejected 60 percent to 40 percent in mid-October.

“The lower deductible was important to our teachers,” said Doreen Jankovich, union president. “We're glad to have this package wrapped up and ready to go.”

The agreement, which faces a final vote by the Omaha Public Schools board on Dec. 21, has two key differences from the earlier proposal.

First, the health care deductible will remain $350 per person, instead of increasing to $600 per person.

Second, the new agreement will allow teachers a pay increase based on their years of experience. The first proposal would have increased teachers' base salary by 4.4 percent. That would have meant an increase of about $1,800 for many teachers, but less for those with the most experience.

The agreement approved by teachers Tuesday increases salary based only on experience, with a range of $1,500 to $1,649 per teacher. On average, the boost is a 3.6 percent raise. Jankovich and the school district's lead negotiator, Gerry Huber, said the smaller overall salary increase allowed the deductible to remain as is.

Teachers commonly see their salaries increase both ways: based on experience and via the base salary.

The rejected proposal's increased health deductible and lack of an experience-based raise were major sticking points for many members. Huber said the new agreement falls within the school district's parameters — an overall 4.1 percent increase — but was rearranged to fit the needs of union members.

Huber said the district researches nationally to ensure that its salary and benefit packages are comparable, fair and equitable compared with districts of similar size and demographic makeup.

Around the metro area, negotiations this year have had mixed results. Teachers in the Bellevue district twice rejected contract proposals. Teachers in the Millard district approved a 3 percent salary increase, and Papillion-La Vista teachers approved a 3.5 percent increase.

The Omaha ballots were hand-counted for about 2½ hours Tuesday night, and Jankovich said she was pleased with the result. Sandra Jensen, school board president, said she, too, was pleased.

“This is within our parameters, so I suspect the board would support it,” Jensen said.

If the board approves the agreement next week, teachers will begin to receive their new take-home pay in their February checks. The retroactive pay — to cover the difference between what was paid them and what the new agreement called for from August to January — will be included in the March check.

OPS teachers are paid monthly and have been working this year under the contract for the last school year.

The union's bargaining team will begin its work on the 2010-11 school year contract in February. Although only union members vote on it, the contract covers nearly 4,000 district staff members.

Contact the writer:

444-1037, michaela.saunders@owh.com

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