For Immediate Release Contact: Johnny Little 314/345-2283

Union Executives Set Strike Date
District Remains “Hopeful,” Stands By Its Pay Parity and Pay Raise For Teachers

In response to the teachers union’s decision to set a strike date of January 19, St. Louis Public Schools Board President Darnetta M. Clinkscale said she was “hopeful” that an illegal strike could be averted and that the education of the district’s students would continue uninterrupted.

President Clinkscale said, “I’m also a bit bewildered by this action, because I thought we were making progress.”

In the aftermath of union executives’ decision to set a strike date, some key facts deserve mention:

The Financial Background

• This is a time of genuine financial hardship for the St. Louis Public Schools. Last month, the State of Missouri officially designated the district as “financially stressed” for the second consecutive year.

• The pay raise offered to our teachers will cost the district more than $20 million over four years. This is a major expenditure, especially at a time of such difficult financial choices.

The Salary Increase and Pay Parity

• The Board’s proposal has always focused on achieving parity with five high-performing school districts in St. Louis County (Clayton, Lindbergh, Parkway, Rockwood and Webster Groves) – districts that are better funded than the St. Louis Public Schools.

• Our analysis shows that the Board’s proposal will achieve teacher salaries at or even above the average County district salaries by 2007-2008, and that some of the salaries are already above the County districts’ averages.

• The Board’s proposal will provide salary increases for approximately 95% of the teachers in the District, with the vast majority of the increases ranging from 18% to 46% over the next two and one half years.

• Under the Board’s proposal, teachers who continue their education through graduate level courses will see the greatest salary increases.

• Even the approximately 5% of the teachers who would not receive a raise are currently being paid almost $6,000 more per year than the average salary among teachers of a comparable education and experience level in each of the five County Districts.

Health Insurance

• The Board incurred a 21 % increase in health care costs on January 1, 2005 and did not pass any portion of that cost on to the employees of the individual coverage.

• The Board has remained committed to providing appropriate health insurance for all district employees at no premium cost to the employees – an increasingly rare situation in this era of rapidly rising health costs. We have fulfilled this commitment by identifying an alternative plan, one that is well established, comprehensive and widely used.

• While employees will see some increase in co-payments and deductibles, they will also enjoy a reduction in the premium cost for family coverage of approximately $1,000 per year.
School Day and Work Year

• On the 2004 Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) test, fewer than six percent of the district’s 10th and 11th graders demonstrated proficiency in communication arts; fewer than three percent showed proficiency in math and science. The Board proposes to increase the length of the school day so that students in the City are able to have as much classroom-instruction time as their suburban counterparts. Our students deserve no less.

• By increasing the work year from 180 to 190 days, which is on par with the County districts, the teachers and other employees will have more time for professional development and parent-teacher conferences – both of which are crucial to enhancing student achievement.

• So far, union executives have adamantly rejected these much-needed increases in classroom-instruction and professional-development time.

Negotiations and the Strike Vote

• The Board is committed to meet and confer with the Union wherever and whenever the Union wants.

• The Board has strived to keep the talks with the Union moving forward. The Union unilaterally set a December 1 deadline to complete negotiations, and the Board made its best and final offer on that date.

• The Board and the district’s administrators – along with many school employees –remain committed to ensuring that the schools remain open and that teaching continues to occur in the classroom.

• A strike by the teachers and other members of Local 420 is illegal. Further, it violates the Board’s Policies and Regulations. The Board will take appropriate actions against any employees who participate in a strike.