Negotiators for the Cumberland Valley Education Association announced teachers will go on strike after rejecting the school board's latest contract offer Monday night. The district says all classes will be canceled when the strike begins Thursday morning.
School Board President John Jordan said he expects the strike will last 3 days.
Jordan said the district offered a four-year contract with salary increases of 4.45% in the first two years and 4.575% in the third and fourth years. The board's previous offer was just over four percent. The raises would have been retroactive to July 1, 2007 - when the previous contract expired.
"We were hoping they would take this back to the teachers so that the teachers could take a look at this carefully and review it," Jordan said.
But teachers union president Jay Foerster said he called the strike because the school board's offer manipulated the numbers. He said the raise isn't as much as the school board would like people to think.
"They changed the agreed upon pot of money we were working with, so they're saying it's roughly a 4.5% raise over 4 years, but it's less than that," Foerster said. "It's actually 4.36% for the first 2 years, and 4.48% for the second 2 years."
"We've been bargaining for 18 months," Foerster continued. "It just doesn't make sense to us to change the rules in the game at this late date and it says to us, how can we trust them in the future?"
"I think there's a real misunderstanding on the interpretation, and that's why we wanted them to come to the table, so we could discuss the interpretation," countered Jordan.
If the students report back to class on Tuesday, PSSA testing will begin at that time, according to Jordan.
Vo-tech students are still expected to report to class on Thursday.
For parents suddenly pressed to find child care, the West Shore YMCA said it will offer all-day care for as long as the strike lasts. Any student currently enrolled in before- or after-school programs would be eligible, but parents must register.
There will be 50 spaces available for students who are not enrolled in YMCA programs. Parents who wish to claim one of those spots must stop by the YMCA and fill out an application. The cost is $25.00 per day.
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