School Board Doesn't Extend Teacher Contracts

The Shorewood School Board didn't extend teacher contracts at Tuesday's board meeting, rejecting a request from the union one day before Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill takes effect.

School Board President Paul Zovic said the board will not approve new contracts, even though the Shorewood Education Association has asked for an extension of the current contract that expires on Friday.

"It wasn't in the best interest of the district to just simply extend the current contract," Zovic said.

He said the district and teacher's union wasn't able to meet to negotiate a new pact; the district offered a new agreement, which the SEA denied. The board planned to discuss a new teacher's pact at its Tuesday night meeting, but removed it.

"There wasn't enough time, and we aren't just going to extend the current contract," Zovic said. "Time just ran out."

Teachers union representatives said educators are prepared to make the concessions outlined in the budget repair bill, including contributing 12.6 percent to their health care premiums, 5.8 percent to their pensions and having a 1 percent cap on salary increases.

District officials are counting on a savings of more than $730,000 in savings from the budget repair bill provision as they try to balance a .

After months of contentious debate in Madison, the budget repair bill, which eliminates most collective bargaining rights for most public employees, was published Tuesday and will take effect Wednesday.

Some area school districts, like Wauwatosa, reached agreements with their unions before the law kicked in. Others, including , are taking the same approach as Shorewood and refusing to extend existing contracts.