Teachers agree to four-year contract
By Nate Bloomquist
Apache Editor
The teachers at IVCC and the school board used a new spin on an old idea to agree to a four-year contract for the teachers.
The contract for the American Federation of Teachers Union local No. 1810 promises a 3.99 percent salary increase for the first year of the contract. In the second year it increases to just under 4.25, in the third it increases by one-quarter of a percent, and there is the same increase in the fourth year.
“This contract addresses our need to recruit and retain high-quality faculty,” said college president Dr. Jean Goodnow. “We had dual goals of remaining competitive and maintaining a balanced budget.”
The contract was negotiated using a relatively new method called an ‘interest-based bargaining process.’In the past, traditional, more confrontational bargaining patterns were used. Basically, teachers made a list of demands showing what they wanted out of the contract, and the board would make it’s own list.
The interest-based bargaining system, which is a product of various workshops both faculty and administration attended, allows both sides to meet together and work as a team. Board members and teachers each receive training in learning the method. This is the second time the approach was used.
The two sides work together on an issue, identify the options, and then decide what the best options are.
“It’s very collaborative,” said Dr. Harriet Custer, the vice president of academic affairs. “You have to have a lot of trust and you have to be open and honest. Not only do we work on contracts we can work on some pretty tough issues too.”
In Illinois, Oakton Community College, and Carl Sandberg are other colleges that use this method.Custer said training is the key to the method’s effectiveness.
“It’s not just something you can walk into,” she said. “You really have to pay attention. It’s been very positive for us.”
Negotiations on the contract began in mid-May and continued through the first week of August. The contract specifies that the lowest starting salary for a teacher is $33,100 per year. For a teacher with a doctorate and 20 years experience, the high end of the salary schedule, the wage is $63,000.
“I think (the negotiations) went really well,” said David Bergsieker, art instructor and AFT president. “I think we were able to address all the issues that we wanted to talk about. I think we were able to reach agreements or compromises that everyone could live with.”
The contract also has language on intellectual property rights. And it specified compensation for the production and development of distance learning. There are also new options for lateral advancement on the salary schedule including compensation for program coordinators.