JANESVILLE — The tumult between the Janesville Education Association and the Janesville School District intensified Thursday night when the JEA’s president directly refuted a line item on an upcoming school board agenda regarding a supposed tentative agreement between the two parties.
The board is scheduled to meet on Tuesday, with an agenda distributed via email shortly after 2 p.m. Thursday. Shortly at 5 p.m. Thursday, Mattison replied all on the email, slamming the district for including an agenda with an item with an item about a tenattive agreement with the JEA because, as she wrote, there isn’t one in place.
Mattison’s reply to the email states, “There is no tentative agreement between the School District of Janesville and the Janesville Education Association. This agenda item is misleading and erroneous. We are staggered that the district chose to publish this board agenda with this item on it. This incident serves to undermine ongoing discussions and potential agreement for next year’s contract.”
School Board President Kevin Murray told The Gazette on Thursday that it’s “language in the agenda that’s placeholder language that’s not really accurate.”
The JEA last met with the district on June 18, Mattison told The Gazette Thursday. The JEA requested mediation, which was denied.
The board has the option to declare an impasse and impose a final offer into 2024-25 teacher contracts.
“We have to talk about it first in closed session,” Murray said.
Unlike in many other states, Wisconsin teachers cannot strike in the case of labor negotiations breaking down. According to state statute, a school district may discharge teachers who engage in a strike.
The Beloit School Board imposed an impasse after its negotiations broke down with the Beloit Education Association last December. It had been the second time in its history that it happened. The first had been 50 years prior.
There is a section on the agenda for closed session items. There are three items, one of which is to “discuss negotiations with the Janesville Education Association including consideration of options related to negotiations for 2024-25.” Next to it, there is an estimated time allotment, as with all other items in closed and open session. That estimated time is 10 minutes.
Other closed session items include an expulsion review, which is allotted an estimated five minutes, and superintendent goals/evaluation, which has an estimated time of 15 minutes.
The JEA has protested the district’s decision to pay less in for employee insurance multiple times, including on May 1 when teachers and staff dressed in all black on International Labor Day. The district will pay 88% for insurance in the 2024-25 school year. Before, it paid 90%. The district did this after $1.3 million in insurance costs. Mattison was critical of the district for the decision because it wasn’t passed through the personal policy and curriculum committee prior to going through the full board.
The Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC), which is the statewide teachers’ union, also bought donuts for staff throughout the district as the JEA circulated a petition protesting the decision while giving away the donuts on May 22.
Mattison and the JEA shared frustration with the board and district in June after the decision to make a $4.9 million payment to decrease $10 million of debt created after the district purchased bonds in 2019. The reason for doing this was to eliminate about $5.3 million in payments between 2026-2030, in addition to saving $793,704 in interest payments.
Tuesday’s meeting will be at the district office, 527 S. Franklin St.
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