SNEA: Looking Back, Moving Forward
Your Dues Dollars At Work!
It’s important to recognize that your dues dollars are actually put to work on a daily basis advocating for members, meeting with administration on behalf of teachers individually and collectively. SNEA doesn’t seek the limelight in promoting positive change for teachers and students. We seek results. Sometimes the results are intangible, like building strong working relationships with administrators and school board members – but it’s the relationship with our members that is the utmost priority.
Please view the following bulleted items that briefly outline a few of the contract provisions that SNEA has negotiated with the district since 2010, when the collective bargaining process began.
You might ask yourself this question:
"How many of these items would have been brought forward unilaterally by the administration and school board? Would they have even known they were issues that were important to teachers?
Our point? The process works, and it works because of your support and participation. And there is much more work to be done . . . with your support.
* SNEA members campaigned and voted (2009-2010) for a more focused process to bring teachers and administrators to the table to negotiate positive change. Some of you may remember the transition didn’t always go smoothly. Dr. Ridder, in his final report to the BOE (June 2014), said this about the process: "I really feel that we as a district have done a very good job with collective bargaining. I’ve been in different scenarios . . . and I feel that the journey has been good. Collective bargaining is all about empowering the teacher, and I think – through collective bargaining – we have come up with a strategic focus of supporting teachers. And I think this has been a very powerful thing."
* Since 2010, SNEA has negotiated binding contracts for teachers, counselors, librarians, school nurses, clerical employees.
* SNEA negotiated two consecutive years of "double" steps on the salary schedule for teachers, whose steps had been frozen in 2009 and 2010. This amounted to consecutive 5% increases for the majority of SPS teachers. Step freezes had never been restored in SPS history prior to 2013.
* Work day provision that more clearly defined the length of a teacher work day
* Duty Free Lunch for teachers as part of the overall binding contract
* Teacher Compensation for Supervising Student Teachers
* Staff Meetings – duration and frequency isn’t set in stone, but they must be "reasonable". SNEA has enforced this provision several times since it was adopted in 2011.
* Grades – The integrity of the grading process is important to teachers. If an administrator wishes to change a grade, they own it.
* Mileage Reimbursements for traveling teachers
* Additional Load Compensation for teachers who are asked to cover a class during plan time
* Administrative Assistance with Student Behaviors & Discipline
* Grievance Procedure for contract violations – SNEA negotiated the contract, SNEA enforces the contract on your behalf.
* Sick Leave – front loaded 4 Sick Leave days to the beginning of each school year to help new teachers and those who had endured serious illness the previous year.
* Increased payment for accrued sick leave upon retirement or resignation
* Eliminated permission forms and unreasonable advance notice for Personal Leave
* Stipend increases
* Lateral Movement for Advanced Degrees
* Expanded window for internal transfers from March to the end of June
* All provisions of the agreement (contract) are binding and prevail if in conflict with board policy
* Any changes to the agreement must be agreed to by both SNEA and the district.
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