May 21,2016
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, the Ridgewood blog has posted verbatim from the Ridgewood Education Association’s Facebook page . We have also included a link to the BOE’s Fact finding Presentation .
Click here to read the Ridgewood Board of Education’s Fact-Finding Presentation with The Ridgewood Education Association.
Here is a summary of the issues surrounding the lack of contract for our association (REA).
“The REA has been working under the terms of an expired contract as of July 1, 2015, negotiations commenced in February 2015. The major issues in our negotiations remain the cost of health contributions teachers will pay, health coverage, and salary.
Employee health contributions are mandated by the state and can not be negotiated away. The law that covers contributions states that once teachers have contributed for four years, and are at the end of a contract, the rate of contribution is then negotiable. Ridgewood is one of the first districts in this position. The rate of contribution is determined by your salary, simply the more money you make the more you are forced to contribute. The average teacher pays 27% of the premium with our most senior teachers paying 35%. This is burdensome on our experienced staff as the increase in contribution is greater than any increase in salary. We are seeking to lower contribution levels.
Salary. We are seeking the county average for salary increase.
Health Coverage. We wish to retain our current options within the state health plan, which is the plan the BOE bargained last round of negotiations. Our willingness to change to the state plan saved the district over a million dollars. It is our contention that Ridgewood’s teachers deserve stability in their health coverage. In addition, the savings achieved in the last round of negotiations combined with the several million dollars contributed by teachers towards that coverage is a significant amount – enough to settle this contract and continue programming.
These issues are not insurmountable and the REA has been willing to engage the BOE in creative means to address the needs of both parties. The larger issue is that the BOE keeps changing their needs. We believe this BOE has no desire to settle a contract:
-At the Sept. 21, 2015 BOE Meeting the Board set their goals for the school year. Goal #3 states: “The Board will continue to negotiate with the REA to settle a new contract.” Their goal is to merely “continue to negotiate”, not settle a contract. When this was brought up by the REA at the meeting BOE Member Vince Loncto stated he saw no problem with the language. Also, why is this the third goal of four? Shouldn’t it be a higher priority?
At the March 23, 2015 meeting the BOE passed a unanimous resolution asking the NJ State Legislature to remove collective bargaining rights for teachers.
-BOE Member Jim Morgan, a member of the Board’s negotiating team, stated in an email sent to the REA: “We can’t impose a contract and the teachers can’t strike. We are therefore left with either just giving up and living with the status quo forever or discussing the issues again. … Like a recalcitrant child, we need to repeat the mantra that ‘the District does not have the money to meet your demands without canceling other educational programs.’” This is their tactic in their own words – act recalcitrant.
-In next year’s school budget the district has allotted $1,592,255 for technology; as well as additional moneys for three new curriculum initiatives next year.
-The BOE keeps changing their position at the table making it impossible for the REA to ever meet them. On March 21, 2016 we presented the Board with a counter proposal. Our counter proposal would cost the Board, over three years, LESS than their proposal, but they refused.
-Ridgewood Board of Education has shown disrespect for the State appointed Fact Finder. They purposely violated procedures by including discussions not entered as evidence at the hearing and misrepresenting the REA’s position in their Fact Finding brief that was submitted to the Fact Finder. Their published brief does not represent their position from the formal Fact Finding hearing. They then doubled-down by making the highly unusual decision to make their report public before the Fact Finder had finished his report in an attempt to intimidate and influence his decision.
Why has this impasse gone on so long? Could it be because this impasse doesn’t affect the Ridgewood Board of Education? Four of the five BOE members do not have children in our schools. One member elects to send her youngest child to a private high school. What do they care if teachers feel disrespected by their actions, if morale is at an all-time low? Their children already graduated and went to great schools. They have nothing at stake – but hopefully the parents and residents of this community will tell this Board of Education that they have a job to do, they need to settle this contract.”
mt taxes are cheep, give them what they like.
I guess the teachers won’t feel disrespected if you pay them more money.
I guess the teachers will do their jobs if you pay them more money.
Crying “Disrespect” is something that started in the ghetto.
Is it just me are are RHS teachers calling out alot the past few weeks. I swear my son has campus center a couple of times a day now.
Sick and tired of hearing some the highest paid teachers in the State complain. Get a grip – the real world does not get automatic increases every year and in many case each year the contribution towards health insurance increases and coverage changes to economize. Let them strike and fire them. Lots of fresh new faces with lots of energy or teachers working in lower paying districts would love to have your jobs and be happy to work for a lot less.
Support lower taxes!
Very disappointing they single out board member’s children. Typical NJEA bully tactics.
Talk about over paid , how much do gym teachers make,
Support Ridgewood taxpayers- give the teachers hmo insurance no ppo.
And take your stupid signs down. All it does is piss off taxpayers who don’t fall for that crap making the town look like shit.
The rest of us have to pay more for health care…join the club.
We should all be fighting the escalation in the price of healthcare, that’s been hurting everyone the fast few years.
NJEA and the REA is shameless trying to bully BOE members and their families. We can only guess the abuse the hard working volunteers have faced privately from the REA and NJEA thugs, and if they did have kids in the local schools what challenges that might present. If you don’t like your health benefit premiums, then downgrade to Bronze level coverage like the rest of us in the private sector. Remember, it was your union who supported Obamacare. So now accept that taxpayers are done subsidizing better health benefit plans for you elite teachers at everyone else’s expense. The rate of contribution is determined by your salary, simply the more money you make the more you are forced to contribute. Lower contribution levels don’t work for taxpayers, so suck it up like the rest of us and enjoy your paid summer vacation.
Time to cut taxes, not raise them
Teachers voted for Obamacare which is why health premiums are rising faster than wages. But now they want taxpayers to carry the extra cost so they can keep their Platinum health benefits? Give us all a break. Its great the REA can’t bully our BOE members as parents like they’ve done in the past with former BOE members. These are hard working volunteers trying to protect Ridgewood taxpayers from hostile and abusive REA/NJEA who has no interest in negotiating in good faith. They just want to keep screwing Ridgewood taxpayers as our school rankings keep declining. $102mn school budget for a town of 25,0000 and yet the REA wants more! This is abject greed.