Union, BOE agree to settle contract

A prolonged standstill that has left West Hempstead teachers working without a contract for two years is nearing an end.

Following the release of a report filed by a state-appointed fact-finder, the West Hempstead Education Association and the district Board of Education reached a tentative agreement last week to settle the teachers’ contract, which expired in June 2009.

According to district officials, both parties accepted the fact-finder’s recommendations that union members be given raises but lose retroactive pay; that negotiations and discussions of new state teacher-evaluation legislation be halted; and that staff development be left as is.

“The evidence establishes that the district’s financial woes are significant,” the fact-finder wrote in his report. While he called WHEA’s original proposal “modest” and acknowledged that it “shows sensitivity to the economic challenges facing the district and its taxpayers,” he said that the district could not implement it without severe disruptions of staffing and programs.

Instead, the fact-finder recommended that teachers receive no retroactive pay for 2009-10 and 2010-11. He also suggested that for 2011-12 and 2012-13, union members forgo annual step increases and raises for earning additional post-graduate or in-service credits. Finally, he proposed that teachers be given raises of about 2 percent in 2011-12 and 1.75 percent in 2012-13.

“The fact finder recognizes that this settlement is more modest than has been reached with a teachers’ unit in Nassau County in quite some time,” he wrote in his report, adding, however, that “the district’s financial situation mandates greater moderation than has been seen in the past.”

In the opinion of Barbara Hafner, president of the teachers union, the settlement is way more than modest. “It’s a major sacrifice,” Hafner said. “I feel that the members of this teachers union are making a tremendous sacrifice … for the sake of peace. The teachers are doing everything in their power to do the right thing, as they always do. … Hopefully this will give the district two years to plan [its budget] correctly.”

Union representatives said they were pleased with the fact-finder’s recommendation to halt negotiations over new teacher evaluation legislation, known as Annual Professional Performance Review legislation, or APPR. At the heart of the dispute between the district and WHEA over the new legislation is a provision that requires the parties to negotiate an appeals procedure permitting teachers and principals to challenge the substance of the evaluations.

The district had originally proposed an evaluation procedure that did not provide for arbitration, which it deemed to be too costly and unnecessary. It also proposed limited appeals to teachers who received a “developing” or “ineffective” rating. But the union did not want to negotiate on the matter: In its view, many aspects of the legislation are still unclear, evidenced by continued revisions being made by the state Education Department commissioner. WHEA considered it too early to finalize language defining the APPR process, according to the fact-finder.

And he agreed with that view, writing in his report, “the Union is being appropriately cautious about making a long-term commitment considering that it does not know the full parameters of the APPR process.”

The fact-finder recommended that the parties reopen negotiations on APPR once the education commissioner issues final regulations on the process.

The fact-finder did not find any reason to change the district’s professional development requirements — something WHEA had requested in its original proposal. Teachers in the district are required to complete 18 hours of professional development each year without additional compensation. The union proposed that they be required to complete “up to” 18 hours and given more say in the course offerings. It also claimed that the quality of the courses needed improvement in order to meet the real needs of teachers, according to the fact-finder. The district objected to changes in staff development requirements, saying it would be a disservice to teachers and students to make modifications.

With all the recommendations in place and with the union and the school board in agreement, it is likely that the contract will be settled by the middle of the month. WHEA members will meet to consider possible ratification of a Memorandum of Agreement, and the board will consider approval of the contract at its May 10 meeting.