Gettysburg school district, teachers' union OK new contract with 3.9% raises over 4 years

After almost a year of bargaining, the Gettysburg Area School District and the union for district teachers have approved a new four-year contract.

The contract was approved by the district's board 7-1 during their Monday, Oct. 21 meeting, following approval from union membership in August.

According to a release by the Gettysburg Area Education Association (GAEA), a majority of the 178 union members in the district had voted in favor of the contract during an August meeting.

Board member Cynthia Ayers was the lone vote against the contract's approval, having earlier questioned the privacy of contracts. Upon Ayers' question, it was expressed that contract negotiations are private until approved, due to the sensitivity of negotiations.

Highlights of the new contract, according to a release by the GAEA, included an average of a 3.9% salary increase in the first year, an average 3.95% increase in the second year, and an average of 3.9% in the third and fourth years.

The contract also adds a doctorate column to the salary schedule, which previously did not benefit educators who earned their doctorates, the union said.

According to the union, the members agreed to several compromises, including the removal of athletics from the contract, increases to healthcare costs, and removing members' spouses from the district's healthcare plan if they are eligible from their own employer.

Spouses who do remain on the plan will also see an increased cost, the union said.

Union membership expressed some disappointment in those compromises, according to the release from the union, but “they believed that it was time to move forward."

During the meeting, school board members thanked negotiators on both sides for their work.

"A big thank you to the negotiations teams on both sides," said board member Al Moyer. "I realize this process sometimes isn't a lot of fun, and it took a little longer to get to the point where we are tonight."

Board member Alice Broadway echoed Moyer's remarks, and thanked the teachers who were working without a contract for their hard work.

"You're doing great work, and our students are really lucky to have you," said Broadway.

This article originally appeared on Hanover Evening Sun: Gettysburg school district, teachers' union OK new contract with 3.9% raises over 4 years