Santa Monica : Teachers to Vote on Contract

Santa Monica teachers are expected to vote in three weeks on a tentative agreement between their union and the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.

The three-year contract, which must be ratified by the 500-member union, provides no cost-of-living increases for teachers, but it would cover increases in teacher health-care premiums.

The austere proposal, which was reached early Sunday morning, follows an earlier district announcement that the Board of Education must cut $1.4 million from its $47-million budget for 1992-93 because of a decrease in state funding and lottery monies.

“Given the grim financial conditions we face, the level of cooperation and trust demonstrated by both sides during some very intense and difficult bargaining has been extraordinary,” said Connie Jenkins, president of the school board, which is expected to accept the terms of the pact.

The agreement would give teachers more say in how their schools are run by shifting much of the decision-making from the district to the individual schools. The agreement guarantees that 80% of a school’s faculty must agree with proposed reforms before they can be put into motion.

The district also would reduce the number of college credits required to reach the top of the salary schedule in 1993-94, provided state revenues are not further reduced next year. The number of credits, in addition to a bachelor’s degree, will be 84, down from 98.