CAPE TEACHERS ASSOCIATION REJECTS PAY PACKAGE

Members of the local teacher's association overwhelmingly rejected a salary proposal from the Cape Girardeau school district last week.

In a 70-13 vote, the Community Teachers Association voted not to accept the proposal, which included an average 2 percent salary schedule increase across the board and a reimbursement option for teachers who don't use the two personal days they receive each year.

Superintendent Dr. Dan Tallent said the CTA vote won't affect the recommendation he plans to present to the board later this week.

"My responsibility is to be financially responsible and make recommendations to the board," he said.

CTA president Sherry Ford said a salary committee meets with administrators each year to develop a salary package for certified faculty which includes salary and fringe benefits changes. This year, she said, the committee asked for changes in some fringe benefits to compensate for the fact that the district had no new money.

She said she could not discuss specifics regarding changes in the benefits schedule because they were "conditions of employment."

"It was not the raise that we rejected," she said. "We are asking for a couple of little items. Because we were not able to reach agreement on the full proposal, it was rejected."

Superintendent Dr. Dan Tallent said he and Dr. Steve DelVecchio, the district's business manager, met with the committee several times to develop the salary package. Administrators were limited in what they could offer teachers, he said, because the district received no new money for salaries.

However, Tallent said, changes were made to the initial proposal so that all teachers received a small raise, rather than only those teachers who could not progress on the salary schedule without additional professional development credit. The final fringe benefit portion of the package was comparable to others in the state, he said.

"We've all along indicated there's no money," he said. "By adopting it as it is, everybody will get an average 2 percent gain in salaries. They wanted some other fringe benefit type things that I didn't feel I would be able to present to the board. It's always difficult when you don't have money."

Ford said she also recognizes the lack of money in the district, but the items the organization wanted would not cost the district much more. However, she said, the CTA is prepared to work with the district to renegotiate the salary package.

"The administration has been very good to work with us," she said. "No one's mad at anyone; we have had a very good working relationship. I just think that knowing we didn't have much money to deal with, the CTA wanted a few items that would not cost the district that much money."

But Tallent said Missouri is not a collective bargaining state, and his recommendation to the board of education will probably be similar to the rejected proposal. "I'm always going to give teachers as much money as I can, as well as other employees in the district," he said. "We're not in a collective bargaining state, so what I'll do is make a recommendation to the school board."