Negotiations have started on the 2002-2003 contract. This is a limited re-opener year, which means that the District and the Association can agree to open as many articles as needed, but each side can only open one article on their own. The District has selected Class Size, and the Association has selected Hours. This was determined by a survey which was conducted last June. In addition to these two articles, discussions are in progress on the Side Letters of Agreement from last year-namely Evaluations, Health and Welfare benefits for Domestic Partners, and Third Grade Divided Opening.
All third grade teachers should receive a survey (if they have not already). There will be a meeting for third grade teachers on February 24 at Providencia Elementary, Room 20 to answer any questions they may have and as a forum to address their concerns. Although third grade divided opening is only in place at three or four schools, all third grade teachers should return their surveys as they are impacted by changes in this area.
We have spent a good deal of time looking into controlling the cost of benefits. The District spends approximately eight million dollars on benefits annually. Yes, you read that right. The Joint Benefits Committee met a number of times to investigate less expensive benefit packages with the same benefit levels. We requested a number of bids and we are under no obligation to change. Given the rising costs of medical coverage, which have risen by 25% over the last two years, we feel it is prudent to see if we can get a better deal. Both benefits and salaries are paid out of the General Fund, and savings in this area have obvious advantages. Before any changes are made, you will be informed. You could say that we are shopping for a better deal.
We are all waiting anxiously for news from Sacramento on the budget and its impact on schoolsí budgets and Burbankís specifically. The district did update the Seniority List, and as unnerving as that idea is, please keep in mind that the state budget is the driving force. There has been some movement in Sacramento to protect school funding, but as I write this no one knows what to expect. While we have some protections under the Education Code and the contract, the District has informed us as information becomes available without actually taking a problem solving approach.
To those people who received a letter indicating that they may not be rehired next year, know that our number one priority is to protect jobs. If it is any comfort to you, the administrators received the same letter you did. The best advice I can give you is to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Contacting your state representatives about the budget wouldnít be a bad idea either.