Saugus district and union reach deal

The negotiations between the Saugus Union School District and the Saugus Teacher Association have come to a close after the two sides reached a collective bargaining agreement that was approved during Tuesday’s district meeting.

Following the expiration of their previous agreement on June 30, Saugus Union and STA negotiators met multiple times in the summer months to hammer out the details of their latest contract.

Whether it was from the podium or during their teachers’ protest in April, members of the teachers association made it clear that benefits, contract language and a salary increase were their main focus points in this year’s labor talks.

Discussions took place throughout the summer and, according to the agenda, the two sides have reached an agreement that includes revisions to employees’ benefits, class sizes, teacher planning sessions and a slight tweak to the salary of special education teachers.

“We’re pleased with the new agreement and thank the Saugus Teachers Association for their fair and respectful collective bargaining,” board President Christopher Trunkey said. “We want to thank all of our teachers for the great work they do every day to educate the children of the Saugus community.”

The new bargaining contract incorporates revisions that increase teachers’ medical caps and the time they have available to plan lessons, while others bind the district in a promise to decrease class sizes.

Similar to the previous agreement between Saugus Union and the Teachers Association, which was approved in 2015, the district will provide all benefit-eligible unit members and their eligible dependents with dental, vision and health care insurance policies.

The medical cap for Saugus educators has increased by a monthly rate of $50, which brings the per year total cap to $7,800 per year, or a $600 increase from the previous contract.

Employees who are eligible for health insurance may elect to receive cash in lieu of health benefits in the amount of $325 a month, which is an increase of $25 from the previous bargaining arrangement.

Along with the benefits increase, the two parties also agreed to an alternative annual class-size enrollment from transitional kindergarten through third grade for each school site. All those class sizes shall be capped to a maximum enrollment of 28 students for every teacher, according to the agreement.

“The district agrees, if financially viable, to make progress toward the 24:1 average class size goal in grades TK-3 at each school site, but the amount of annual progress shall not be tied to the ‘making annual progress’ formula used by (Ed. Code).”

If compliance with the new class size restrictions result in penalties that would reduce or eliminate the funding grant for the class size reductions, the school district and the union agree to renegotiate and implement a mutually agreed solution.

After its approval on Tuesday, the new contract will remain in effect until June 30, 2021.