Salem-Keizer asks state to mediate teacher pay, other contract negotiations
After nearly six months of contract negotiations between teachers and Salem-Keizer Public Schools, superintendent Andrea Castañeda has asked a state mediator to step in to help reach a labor agreement.
“We need some additional support and resources to help move bargaining forward in a way that is fair, that is competitive and is also financially sustainable for the district,” Castañeda said Tuesday.
Tyler Scialo-Lakeberg, president of the Salem-Keizer Education Association, said the union believes the district has acted prematurely.
“We’ve been making steady progress in recent sessions and already have several tentative agreements,” she said. “We were hopeful that we could continue to collaborate and work toward agreement.”
The last time teacher contract negotiations reached this point was in December 2004, when both sides declared an impasse and requested mediation. That lasted until March 2005.
The two sides have reached agreement on some issues, but remain far apart on pay, Castañeda said.
Proposals $54.5 million apart
On Sept. 5, the district proposed a new compensation package to licensed staff worth about $20 million in additional compensation over two years.
It included a 3.5% raise for each of the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years, an increase in insurance contributions, and an increase in licensed bilingual and special education salary differentials.
The proposed raises are in addition to the average 3% step increases that 86% of licensed educators receive annually for years of service, Castañeda said.
On Sept. 18, the Salem-Keizer Education Association countered with a proposal that would cost the district an estimated $74.4 million over two years. It included a 26% raise over the next two years.
“That leaves us with about a $54.5 million gap between the two financial proposals,” Castañeda said.
Castañeda said the district does not compare its teacher pay to that of other school districts.
“Our offers are based on competitive market wage and labor data, not benchmarking against other districts.," she said.
"Benchmarking is a way of understanding context but it is a faulty way of understanding total compensation, because underneath those across-the-board increases are real differences in PERS contributions, where people already were on the salary scale, and so we don’t use those numbers specifically," she said.
Looming budget deficit
Part of the reason the district requested mediation, Castañeda said, is that work to prepare for expected future budget cuts can’t conclude until bargaining is over.
“For us, this is especially urgent because we are already looking at a $38 million deficit at the end of the 2024-25 school year,” she said.
Despite getting a record amount of money from the state in this year's legislative session, decreasing enrollment, increases in staff and the end of federal COVID-19 relief funds are contributing to the shortfall, Castañeda has said.
The district also is bargaining with the Association of Salem-Keizer Education Support Professionals, which represents about 2,500 district support staff working in custodial and maintenance, transportation, technology, security, library media, instructional and community support, administrative clerical support, language services, student services, and construction services.
The projected $38 million deficit is based on the district’s current offers to both associations. If the district accepted current proposals from both associations, that deficit would increase to $117 million, Castañeda said.
The district's budget this year is $1.3 billion, including $605.3 million in the general fund, which is the district's main operating fund. Other funds include capital projects, grants and self-supporting services.
The school board plans to begin community engagement sessions next month around district priorities and the budget. A second round of community engagement focusing on specific budget cuts is planned for the winter or spring of 2024.
But budget cuts will begin to be identified this year, Castañeda said.
“This fall I anticipate we will be doing the first round of initial cuts that are exclusively and very intentionally designed to start with the district first, and make our way only when necessary to the schoolhouse doors,” she said.
How mediation works
The district and the union each would be charged a fee for collective bargaining mediation services.
Mediation can’t begin until the state assigns a mediator and mediation sessions are scheduled. That can take weeks.
"Our primary concern is that the mediation process means that our members will no longer have the same level of open access to bargaining discussions that they've had since last spring," SKEA's Scialo-Lakeberg said. "We believe in transparency and open dialogue, but the district seems to want to work behind closed doors."
Mediation lasts a minimum of 15 days. After that, mediation can continue, or either party can declare an impasse.
“It is our absolute goal that mediation is successful,” Castañeda said. “100% goal is that mediation is successful.”
If mediation does not result in a contract agreement, there is a mandatory 30-day cooling-off period before teachers can strike.
“Our goal is clearly to avoid that,” Castañeda said.
Several large districts around the country have seen teacher strikes in recent years.
Portland teachers appear to be on the brink of strike following so-far unsuccessful mediation there in August and September, according to The Oregonian.
The Portland teachers and district are working through several issues, including class sizes, teacher planning time and student behaviors. But pay is among them. The district's most recent offer includes 4% raises but the union is seeking a 21.5% raise, according to The Oregonian.
Tracy Loew covers education at the Statesman Journal. Send comments, questions and tips: tloew@statesmanjournal.com or 503-399-6779. Follow her on Twitter at @Tracy_Loew
This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Salem-Keizer schools asks state to mediate teachers' contract
