Unresolved Teachers' Contract Center Stage at Board of Education Meeting

Thursday’s Board of Education meeting saw at least 100 district teachers and supportive Haddonfield residents wearing black in recognition of the stalled teachers' contract talks.

Several residents, parents of Haddonfield Memorial High School alumni and current district students spoke in support of teachers and against the current contract .

While everyone focused on maintaining composure in the crowded, un-air-conditioned high school library, the message was consistent. Residents feel the teachers go above and beyond, and that their contribution secures a solid education for students in Haddonfield schools.

One parent stated, “As a community, we value our teachers and we need to validate what they do. This is a unique and special place.”

Debra Nussbaum of Haddonfield said, “I pay $14,000 a year in taxes in Haddonfield. Because of the people in our schools, I’m getting my money’s worth.”

Nussbaum went on to characterize teachers in the district. “These are not people who just teach children, they change people's lives. Haddonfield’s precious commodity is our teachers.”

One of Nussbaum's sons is an educator at ; another son graduates this June and will attend Yale University in the fall. She credited Haddonfield teachers starting in fifth grade with inspiring her son to reach higher.

According to co-presidents of the Haddonfield Education Association, Jackie Carroll and Sharon Stokes, district teachers are entering a second year without a new contract. Their last contract expired in June 2010.

Carroll said the lack of a contract has hit teachers' wallets.

“We’ve taken a pay cut this year. Salaries are frozen,” she said.

According to Carroll, Haddonfield teachers currently pay 1.5 percent of their salary toward health benefits, as mandated by the New Jersey Legislature.

“Not 1.5 percent of the premium—1.5 pecent of our salaries,” she emphasized.

Board President Steve Weinstein said that in the board’s view, “It is not that they are working without a contract. By law, the prior contract still applies to all with the exception of a pay increase.”

“I’m not saying that it is pleasant. We want a contract as much as they do and we will continue to try to reach an agreement,” Weinstein added.

Weinstein added that with the existing health benefits, the board is paying an additional $500,000 to teachers in the form of benefits under the extended contract.

“No one wants to negotiate in public,” said the board president, “but if you read what the governor’s issues are, it is pretty clear that salaries and benefits are part of the discussion.”

Three mediation sessions did not produce an agreement between the teachers and district, and the sides are too far apart to merit a fourth attempt, Carroll said. The process now continues with a fact-finder, who the state will assign to examine the situation.

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