THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2006
Dist. 15 Teachers Vote For Strike
By DWIGHT ESAU
Journal Reporter
For months, Palatine School District 15 officials and their teachers union have negotiated about a new contract, without reaching an agreement.
On Monday, the possibility of a teacher strike loomed over the district.
Members of the district's Classroom Teachers Council (CTC) voted 772-5 on Sept. 18 to authorize a strike. It doesn't mean the union has called a strike, or that teachers will walk off the job immediately. It means one of the legal requirements to make a strike happen has taken place.
"This was not unexpected," a statement on the district's website said.
The two sides have been working with a federal mediator for several weeks. The current contract with the union expired on Aug. 31. An evening bargaining session between the two sides was planned for Tuesday evening, Sept. 19. This was to be preceded by a meeting of the CTC's executive committee.
The strike vote was triggered by the board's decision earlier in September not to make the annual teacher salary adjustment that would normally occur on the first payroll of the school year on Sept. 15. On the website, officials said, "We made this decision because we felt that it would be imprudent and fiscally irresponsible to make salary adjustments at this time, since this issue has yet to be resolved at the bargaining table."
The key issues are compensation, benefits, and health insurance. The district, which has about 13,000 students in 24 elementary and middle schools in Palatine, Arlington Hts., and Rolling Meadows, maintains that its current salaries and new offer to the teachers are more generous than that of other area districts.
Superintendent Robert McKenna said the district has offered teachers a 9.25% increase over the next three years, while he said teachers have asked for a 24% hike over the same period.
"The board values its teachers and other certified staff and wants to compensate them fairly in acknowledgment of their excellent work on behalf of our students," the district said. "But, it is our position that a 24% salary increase is not in the best fiscal interest of the district."