Chester Upland teachers reject contract offer

Chester Upland teachers have overwhelmingly rejected a contract offer from the school district that would have given veteran educators smaller raises than less experienced staffers and, for the first time, required union members to pay for health insurance.

Michele Paulick, president of the 234-member Chester Upland Education Association, said teachers voted, 123-54, on Monday to reject the three-year pact. She said she was surveying members "to see what needs to be changed in order for them to accept it."

Teachers in the Delaware County district, one of the most distressed in Pennsylvania, have worked without a contract for more than three years and have not received a raise in five. The average salary is about $75,000, according to union officials.

Chester Upland's offer would have increased the number of steps - annual built-in pay increases - from 13 to 15 to reach the top of the salary scale. Most teachers would have received a $2,100 raise in each of the next three years. Those at top scale would have received a $1,000 bonus each year plus a smaller raise in years two and three, according to someone familiar with the offer.

Teachers also would have to buy into the Delaware County Consortium health-care plan. For those with families, the annual cost could be as high as $1,300.

"There was money on the table for everybody, not a lot of money for everybody," Paulick said.

Some union members also objected to a provision that would have given extra pay to teachers in the district's STEM at Showalter School, with a science and technology focus for grades 7-12, even though the length of their work day is nearly the same as that in Chester High School.

"We've been waiting a very long time," Paulick said. "We want to get it done, and we want to make it right for everyone."

Teachers worked without pay at the start of the year because Chester Upland - under state control because of long-standing financial and academic troubles - ran out of money. The district's money woes have worsened in recent years as more students head to charter schools, for which the school system must foot the bill.

Peter Barz, the state receiver at Chester Upland, said he was disappointed. "We put together what we consider a fair contract," he said.

He acknowledged that Chester Upland has only so much money after passing a budget last June with a $7.5 million deficit. "We're just very limited in what we can do," he said. "Everyone understands that."

Faculty members work in sometimes challenging conditions, paying for many of their own supplies and teaching in poorly maintained schools.

"Our buildings are old," Paulick said. "It all comes down to the district doesn't have enough money."

She said the union plans to collect the teacher surveys by Friday and resume negotiations based on the results.

kboccella@phillynews.com

610-313-8232

@Kathy_Boccella