RUSD School Board Approves Remaining Union Contracts

In just 50 minutes, the Racine Unified School District Board of Education Thursday evening approved two-year contract extensions for all of its employee unions.

The agreements, which run from July 1 through June 30, 2013, include a two-year wage freeze and a requirement that all unionized employees contribute 5.8 percent of salary to the state retirement plan. The contracts also put employees into a health insurance plan that carries a significantly higher deductible.

The financial impact is the same as the agreement the School Board approved on Wednesday with the Racine Education Association, which represents about 1,600 teachers.

David Hazen, RUSD chief financial officer, said that by switching health insurance plans and adopting the other contract provisions, the district expects to save $19.2 million annually, or about $7,529 per full-time employee. He added that the opportunity to achieve those savings—and plug a potential $25 million budget hole for 2011-12—was a motivation for reaching the new agreements.

Governor Scott Walker proposed that all public employees in the state contribute 5.8 percent of salary to the pension plan and contribute at least 12.6 percent of health insurance premiums. Hazen told the standing-room crowd that the insurance change saves 13.1 percent. Overall, the negotiated contracts save the district about $6 million more than under the governor’s proposal.

In addition to the insurance, pension contribution and salary changes, the contracts for building service employees, secretaries/clerks, carpenters and painters, add the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. birthday as a holiday to be consistent with contracts for the teachers and educational assistants which added the MLK holiday in the 2009-10 school year.

RUSD and its unions swiftly reached tentative agreements on the contract extensions. Negotiations opened March 1 and the teachers union ratified its agreement a week later on March 8. The other unions followed on Wed., March 9 and Thurs., March 10.

The district and the unions wanted to avoid being affected by new state legislation that would eliminate nearly all collective bargaining for most public employee unions. The highly controversial bill cleared the Assembly on Thurs., March 10 and awaits the governor’s signature.

State Republican leadership has claimed that sharply reducing public employee collective bargaining ability was “a tool” to help local municipalities and school boards balance their budgets despite less state aid and without raising property taxes. The governor’s proposed 2011-13 budget includes $1.7 billion in cuts to state aid to education and municipalities

Union and board members took jabs at Gov. Walker and the toolbox prior to the votes.

“When you look at things as my problem or your problem, you don’t solve anything. Our governor hasn’t learned that. But here in Racine, we look at things as our problem. And, that’s how we reach agreements,” said Board member Don Nielsen.

He draw applause saying: “There’s nothing wrong with a toolbox as long it’s carried by a union contractor.”

The School Board approved five contract extensions with the Racine Education Assistants Association, Service Employees International Union Local 152 (building service employees), SEIU Local 152 (clerks/secretaries), Carpenters Local 161 and Allied Trades Local 108 (painters).

The contract with the teachers union was also voted on a second time Thursday because an email glitch from RUSD prevented notices of the Wednesday School Board meeting from being sent to news media outlets at least 24 hours in advance as required by state law.

Following the votes, union members exchanged handshakes and hugs with School Board members.