NOVEMBER 16, 2015 LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2015, 1:20 AM
BY STEVE JANOSKI
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
RIDGEWOOD — A state-appointed fact finder in February will try to settle a 10-month contract dispute between the Board of Education and the Ridgewood Education Association, even as the two sides try to hammer out an agreement on their own.
Although there are several points of contention — including possible salary increases — the fight over how much REA members must contribute to their health insurance premiums has taken center stage since negotiations began last February.
The fact finder has scheduled an informal hearing on Feb. 3, when each side will present what it considers pertinent information, officials said. Two-and-a-half months later, the fact finder will issue a non-binding recommendation on how to settle the dispute.
In Ridgewood, union members pay an average of 26 percent of the cost of their health insurance premiums, a district spokeswoman said Thursday. This, many members say, is simply too much
“I know I have to pay something, but this an unreasonable burden on my family,” Mariann Gelenius said at the Nov. 2 board meeting. Gelenius, a Child Study Team member at Benjamin Franklin Middle School, said she’s paying about 35 percent of the premium cost, and that’s meant less take-home pay — even after previous salary increases.
REA President Michael Yannone, a 19-year veteran of Ridgewood High School, said Friday that the REA would keep meeting with the board’s negotiating team, but an agreement would depend on the board’s willingness to lower insurance contributions.
“That’s the stumbling block,” Yannone said. “We’re willing to negotiate that — we know that’s going to cost us something, and so we’re willing to pay to get that … but right now the board is holding the line on that issue.”
https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/fact-finder-will-join-teacher-talks-1.1456157
