Teachers, Clark County School Board to vote on contract next week

The teachers union and Clark County School Board are expected to vote on a new two-year contract for teachers next week, ending a contentious battle over a pay raise that could have led to a teacher’s strike.

The teachers union, the Clark County Education Association, will seek approval from its members on Tuesday, said Executive Director John Vellardita.

If they approve the deal as expected, the School Board will vote on Sept. 12.

The deal, announced last week, will give a 3-percent raise across the board and will allow teachers to move up a step in the salary table for both the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years. The district will also increase its health care contributions by 4 percent each year.

Teachers who have completed enough professional development activities to qualify for a column advancement on the salary table will also receive another raise amounting to more than $5,000, which was the major point of contention during contract talks between the parties.

It is not yet clear when teachers would see the increased compensation in their paychecks if the School Board approves the contract next week.

The step and column raises will be paid retroactive to the first pay period of the school year, while the increase in health care contributions will be retroactive to Aug. 1, Vellardita said.

The district estimates the cost of the column advancement raises at $11 million to $15 million, based on the estimate that roughly 2,500 will qualify for the raise— though that may change depending on the final number of successful participants.

Though the district has not given specifics on how it plans to fund the column raises, it announced last week that it has found funding through interest earnings, frozen central office positions and by using federal or state funds to pay for certain positions rather than using money from the district’s operating budget.

Both the district and the union will also work collaboratively to make changes to the professional growth system — the system used to determine how teachers may move across a column in the salary table and gain a raise.

The current system allows teachers to choose from a variety of professional development activities in order to earn the 225 “contact units” needed for a raise.

The system had a rocky rollout in 2016, with the union repeatedly fighting with the district over which educators qualify for raises.

The current system allows an array of activities to qualify for contact units, ranging from completing college courses to attending certain education conferences or serving on a curriculum task force.

Vellardita said both parties will form a working group to make improvements to the system — specifically to change the kind of activities that qualify for contact units.

“The foundation behind that discussion is it’s got to be evidence-based,” he said. “In other words, what’s occurred that clearly demonstrates this kind of professional development improves a teacher’s practice, where in turn that also improves student achievement?”

Contact Amelia Pak-Harvey at apak-harvey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4630. Follow @AmeliaPakHarvey on Twitter.