Franklin Lakes Teachers Union, Board Of Ed. Deal Is For 4 Years

FRANKLIN LAKES, NJ — The tentative settlement agreement between the Board of Education and the Franklin Lakes Education Association is for four years.

The agreement resolves "all outstanding issues," the Franklin Lakes Board of Education said in a statement Tuesday morning.

The sides reached a settlement agreement at 2 a.m. Tuesday morning, a day after teachers walked out of school Monday in protest of a nearly two-year long contract dispute.

The board said negotiating the agreement "was a difficult process and was hampered by Monday's illegal actions by the union."

The district's 276 teachers returned to work Tuesday morning.

Sharon Milano, president of the FLEA, said she was "proud" of union members "standing up for what is right.

"They demonstrated their resolve to be treated as professionals. We now look forward to returning our undivided attention to our classrooms and our students, which is where we would much rather be," Milano said in a statement. "I also hope that the settlement we reached will help to retain the incredibly talented and dedicated staff that we currently have working in the district, from whom each and every one of our students benefit."

The New Jersey Education Association did not provide details of the settlement agreement, which both the union and board will review and put forward for ratification votes.

A mediator from the state Public Employment Relations Commission was appointed and met with representatives from the FLEA and the board Monday night.

The mediation session came after FLEA members walked out of work at about 6:30 a.m. Monday. It was the first teachers' strike in the town's history, according to the union.

Board President Joseph Rosano met with Joseph Tondi, an FLEA representative, several times to work out the framework of a new deal. No other people were in the room, Rosano said.

Rosano said there were "never any handshake deals" in place.

"Throughout our discussions, Mr. Tondi and I worked to identify terms that might be acceptable to our respective sides. We agreed verbally and in writing that none of the possible settlements we discussed were proposal[s] and nothing has been agreed," Rosano said. "On multiple occasions, we went to our teams and returned to the table with no agreement."

The sides tried meeting again Monday morning, but the board's entire negotiating team was not there, Milano said.

Four members of the board's negotiating team were "ready to go at 9 a.m. and the teachers were aware of that fact. Instead, they decided to strike," Rosano said.

The board sought an emergency court order Monday ordering teachers back to work.

The district learned of the teachers' strike early Monday morning and sent out a reverse-911 call notifying parents. Administrators supervised students who went to school until they were released to parents.

Rosano met with the union's representative several times beginning in April and up to Sunday night. The parties, according to the board, "were very close to mutually acceptable terms," and the strike called "into question their commitment to resolving this dispute."

Teachers have been working under an expired contract since July 2017. The sides have been negotiating since March 2017.

The association asserts that the board "unnecessarily prolonged contract negotiations to continue to use our diminishing salaries" as a source of local tax relief.

Health care costs were a sticking point for union members. Medical insurance contributions have outpaced any salary increases the union would have received. Contributions are based on how much members earn. The more someone makes, the more they contribute.

Previously, the Board of Education presented the union with a number of proposals that would increase teacher compensation and reduce members' health insurance contributions. The union rejected them.

A state-appointed fact-finder was brought in to foster better negotiations between the sides. The fact-finder provided a report of recommendations to both sides, which the union rejected.

In 2017-2018, 27 Franklin Lakes teachers made more than $100,000 annually, according to an annual list provided by the state Department of Education.

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com