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http://www.omniture.com --> Email Story to a Friend July 6, 2006 Medford teachers union might ratify contract By Paris Achen Mail Tribune The Medford teachers union is expected to announce today whether it has ratified a two-year employment contract that will reduce teachers' benefits and annual cost-of-living salary increases. The concessions, tentatively agreed to June 15, are meant to help the Medford School District control class sizes with a tight budget. The Medford support staff union ratified its two-year employment contract June 21 with more than 99 percent approval, a record for that union. If the teachers' agreement is ratified, the Medford School Board will consider approving the contracts at a meeting at 11:30 a.m. today at the Central Office Boardroom, 500 Monroe St. Affecting about 600 teachers and 450 support staff members, the contracts would be effective retroactively to July 1. The agreements, made after four months of negotiations, trim annual cost-of-living raises from 3.4 to 2.5 percent, increase employees' health insurance costs and sunset benefits for early retirees. Under existing contracts, district employees pay up to a $50 deductible for medical care and a co-payment of $5 for doctor office visits. The new contracts would add annual health care insurance deductibles of $100 to $250 for an individual and $300 to $750 for a family. Another addition would be maximum out-of-pocket medical payments of $1,100 to $1,250 for individuals and $3,300 to $3,750 for families, depending which of two plans is selected. The co-payment for a doctor's office visit would be $15. The contracts also call for pay raises for longevity after certain numbers of years of employment. That would be in addition to the annual 2.5 percent cost-of-living increase. Early retirement benefits would diminish from 10 years to eight years for existing employees and anyone hired after June 30 would not receive early retirement benefits. A $300 stipend for dental and vision visits would be replaced with dental and vision coverage under the health insurance plan. Retirees would continue to participate in the state Public Employees Retirement System, which does not include health benefits. The contracts also place a cap on what the district pays each year for health insurance, which equals out to about $890 per employee for the first year of the contract. The district had expected to spend about $9,600 per employee next year under the previous contract. District officials said they hope the savings realized from the contracts will allow for year of the contract. The district had expected to spend about $9,600 per employee next year under the previous contract. District officials said they hope the savings realized from the contracts will allow for reduced class sizes, which have reached 40 pupils in some cases. The existing contract would have forced the district to cut 23 teaching positions, 15 of which would have been unrelated to a dip in student enrollment. District officials said they expect to restore at least those 15 teaching positions under the new contracts. Other details of the contracts that were sticking points during negotiations include maintaining the same amount of time teachers have to prepare lessons. That equals out to an average of about five hours and 50 minutes per week for elementary teachers and an average of five class periods for middle school and high school instructors. An existing limit on staff meetings also remained intact. The district had initially proposed allowing administrators to call unlimited staff meetings, which some teachers feared would cut into preparation time. Advertisement s Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Discount Hotel Reservations --> online casinos news Ashley Furniture HomeStore Send Flowers California Casinos GMAT Prep Windermere Van Vleet Sports Equipment Entertainment Guide --> Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Online Casino Reviews