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Board Approved Fiscal Stabilization Plan (FSP)
May 10 School Board Meeting
Good Evening Board Members,
Tomorrow is Day 3 of Negotiations. It will be crucial in determining how talks progress from this point forward. As you’ve heard me say numerous times before, the Evergreen Teachers Association is committed to bargaining in good faith. We believe collaborating with the district to find viable solutions is the best way to achieve our common goals.
Quoting from our existing Collective Bargaining Agreement, “The first item to be discussed for the 2012-2013 contract will be Health and Welfare Benefits, beginning with consideration of the findings and options from the Health Benefits Committee.” The two teams did just that during the opening sessions of bargaining. First, they updated the HBC side letter to ensure it continues its valuable work. The agreement delineates its purpose as follows, “The parties will work collaboratively to maintain quality benefits and make efforts to minimize any increased cost.”
Its March 16th Report of Findings and Options lists as number one, “Mitigate increases by educating employees on the relationship between healthcare usage and costs. Implement a wellness program to reduce plan usage and thus reduce future costs." Again, the two sides acted together to design year one of an Evergreen Wellness Program, which addresses some of the alarming statistics regarding the current health of Evergreen employees. I have copies of the pertinent section of the report for each of you although I’ve already provided it to Trustees Songcayawon and Venkatraman.
The next logical step is to allow the process to come to fruition and examine the results as next year unfolds. I'm pleased that we already have the committee in place to do so. Given the substantial reserve, the district is able to act with care and prudence rather than rashly push to further shift the cost of health care to employees - a strategy that would negatively affect Evergreen School District for years to come.
I believe so many teachers are here tonight because they understand the gravity of the situation. We have been making sacrifices for years ostensibly to help the district deal with the state's financial struggles. For example, bargaining unit salaries are down $2,626,707 over the prior year, and benefit costs are down another $813,239 during the same period. Inexplicably, the result has been a reserve that has grown steadily since 2004 reaching 22 million dollars at the end of last year, or 24% of the district's total budget – eight times what is required by the state for economic uncertainty. Evergreen has the dubious distinction of having the second highest percentage reserve in the county. Only Luther Burbank, which consists of one school, is higher.
So you can see how important tomorrow's bargaining session will be. To the extent the district is willing to negotiate in good faith and accept the current agreements as sufficient, I believe the two teams could wrap things up fairly quickly. Such a move would allow the possibility of collaboration in such areas as the upcoming School Board election and Parcel Tax Measure. If, on the other hand, the district attempts to push for additional cuts to employee benefits, the sessions could easily go on for months - an outcome which would be detrimental to all parties including the community we serve.
It is my hope that under the School Board’s thoughtful guidance, the district’s negotiating team will make the appropriate choice for everyone involved.
Thank you.
EESD Sunshine Proposal Feb. 9
ETA Sunshine Proposal Mar. 8
Brian Wheatley, ETA President
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