[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6117557,"mediaKeyId","2729826-8feaf7c1ee3c96dd24482df9c1c47847","parentId",2729826,"title","Union and district at odds over implementation of presidential-release leave after arbitration ruling","audioSeconds",4799,"startMs",116000,"endMs",4915000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2729826-8feaf7c1ee3c96dd24482df9c1c47847&start=116&end=4915","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2729826-8feaf7c1ee3c96dd24482df9c1c47847/thumbnail_116000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6117557/Florida/Union-and-district-at-odds-over-implementation-of-presidential-release-leave-after-arbitration-ruling","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6117557-6f0800ef4d7a06a2bd4de90f19b395ab/orig.mp4?Expires=1770801151&Signature=C-k7us4F6o6Vy-EggeCnsA96Z4KelzvVol-gcPuuh4XNCZzUlR1npZr5qokk~FcHTspt0DQ-v41U5M3~3q9-Ubh3RQIkq6jhOkSS3CjHPKHhZcctZA~2fyALjkynb4YvsrsG-d9mAKwk0~PF8rDlV0In3916KULEcp78NWzna72KlA4BtR7yslTejOajU~vF~QWB~3ftfM8Ku0tV8Zvu1bkJYUCBzkvVbN0Mft6PFGRuaeJz0N5SJTSaNQKe4V273hbwqOv30D9no9UBAxBzK78A~2uTnM33tCVIUcAZM2eJMxMUsK3gEamJDRjwSOcbaftQHmU35KPKZePRN2v4Bw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Martin County School District, FL","date","2025-03-21T21:39:02.863Z","article","Martin County Education Association leaders and school district officials clashed Tuesday over whether the collective-bargaining provision that allows the union president to take a yearlong unpaid presidential release should remain and how it should be implemented.

The disagreement follows an arbitration ruling that sided with the union on the underlying interpretation of the release provision and sent implementation details back to the parties to negotiate. Martin County Education Association representatives said the release helps union officers do their work during the school day; district officials said the provision posed administrative and legal complications that required careful written procedures.

The union argued the district’s prior implementation for a former president was routine and workable. \"It worked the same way that it worked in my other district,\" said former MCEA President Karen Resiniti, describing the earlier arrangement in which the union prepaid salary and the district ran the payroll and benefits administration. Current union witnesses said the arrangement allowed release-time presidents to respond to teacher issues during the day rather than after classes.

The district’s bargaining team described multiple administrative points that needed resolution before it could implement a release year routinely: how a released president would be evaluated, to whom the released president would report, how benefits and retirement contributions would be handled, and indemnification if the released employee was not a district payroll regular. Jeff Slinker, counsel for the school board, told the hearing that \"under Florida law, a school board cannot pay or compensate an employee to do work for a union,\" and that draft MOU language was intended to address the compliance and operational issues that flow from a paid-through-district implementation.

Gary Simmons, Treasure Coast Service Unit director for the Florida Education Association, described the post-arbitration negotiations as extensive: \"bargaining began with, 6 sessions solely discussing the president's release language,\" he said, summarizing the amount of bargaining time devoted to the issue.

Union leaders said the district’s later proposal to remove the presidential-release language altogether felt like a reversal after the arbitration outcome and prior discussions about implementation; the union testified that the arbitrator’s decision required the parties to negotiate the mechanics, not to abolish the right. MCEA President Matt Theobald said he was put back in the classroom this school year after the parties could not finalize the implementation language; \"I was placed on unpaid instructional leave,\" he told the hearing, describing how the disagreement affected his employment and benefits.

The parties produced a multi-page draft memorandum of understanding designed to spell out evaluation, reporting, payroll pass-through procedures, and insurance and retirement treatment. The MCEA witnesses said previous practice and similar arrangements elsewhere in Florida informed their proposals. The district said the MOU needed additional detail to protect the district from financial and compliance risk.

Where the matter stands: arbitrator findings and prior implementation practice are part of the hearing record, but the parties have not executed an implementation agreement for the current request. The hearing record contains draft MOUs, administrative exhibits and testimony describing the operational steps that remain disputed.

The special magistrate will consider the parties' evidence, the arbitrator's decision and the detailed implementation proposals before issuing a recommendation. In the meantime, the union and district remain at impasse on whether and how a released-president year should be implemented.

Provenance: topicintro evidence begins when the union first framed presidential leave in opening remarks (transcript block starting at s=116.50) and topic discussion continues through the arbitrator/MOU testimony and related exhibits (last related segment around s=5338.76).","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","MCSD/MCEA Impasse Hearing: Session 2","oneSentenceSummary","Martin County Education Association leaders and school district officials clashed Tuesday over whether the collective-bargaining provision that allows the union president to take a yearlong unpaid presidential release should remain and how it should be implemented.","taxTitle","Martin, School Districts, Florida","taxId",15373,"location","Florida","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6117547,"Union, district fight over $28,003 raise pool and Western Zone supplement after MOA and grievance",2193,381000,2574000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2729826-8feaf7c1ee3c96dd24482df9c1c47847&start=381&end=2574","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2729826-8feaf7c1ee3c96dd24482df9c1c47847/thumbnail_381000.jpg","/articles/6117547/Florida/Union-district-fight-over-28003-raise-pool-and-Western-Zone-supplement-after-MOA-and-grievance","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6117547-2de81c96eb2fe192245230b7487fb5e6/orig.mp4?Expires=1770801151&Signature=hA4TYxm3E9Tb1pE8nVweLLFT3MbFUA-RYNkXV5xCuiaYijxrEVk4tQ~Tc6PloMWSqWkKhEHzbxq6buPuDt2DqsguM3x6Hh780a~~Aw7j2IcqFEB5b6bLv3Gl2tHzuKsMM1HFzG~S1lL~E3PDdFZk2QYafW-r8nTYTSqno2RDif~Ij0N02fLespVY3v37R3gb0H33pTHGf8~3G~63w-y-v3NTnhayTL~ljirE6-E93ojTajdsDdGB8L8FoVhSvrzrh0t1ZpJANd9RFZiGhfPWfmxDmZPjauTHkx6gUfWdNspqK2afzWFEay5Fyp6sbOKAbxRWhs-NTKnhqdcslh1hWg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Martin County negotiators and the Martin County Education Association argued over how to allocate about $28,003 left in the bargaining \"raise pool,\" and whether money should be used to preserve a supplemental pay distinction for long-tenured teachers in the county’s Western Zone.

The union detailed three core unresolved issues in opening testimony: leftover raise-pool funds, personal/campaign/presidential leave language, and the Western Zone supplement tied to Indiantown Middle School and Warfield Elementary School. \"We have $28,003.33 remaining in that raise pool,\" the union's witnesses testified. That balance formed the basis for multiple competing proposals.

The Western Zone supplement has a long history in the contract. Article 2.4(e) references a two-part formula: a fixed amount that applies to teachers hired on or after a cutoff date and a grandfathered provision for those hired earlier that adds $13.75 plus an amount tied to appendix B2 (historically expressed as 4.5% of a $37,000 base). The board and union disputed whether a 2022 appendix amendment (that set a $2,000 flat amount in B2) removed or supplanted the older article language for grandfathered employees. The union filed grievances arguing the grandfathered teachers were still entitled to an effective $3,375 total (the union’s interpretation), while the district said the adopted MOA and the appendix change produced a $3,100 harmonized supplement for everyone in the zone.

To resolve the dispute, the parties recorded a memorandum of agreement in January 2023 that, according to testimony, \"was meant to supplant, replace, and supersede the language in article 2 and appendix B2\" and set a $3,100 Western Zone supplement. That MOA was ratified by the union and approved by the school board, and the district subsequently paid $3,100 to Western Zone teachers. Still, the union maintained a separate grievance seeking the larger grandfathered payout and the parties reached a settlement for the shortage prior to arbitration.

When bargaining resumed in 2024, the union proposed three options to use the remaining $28,003: (1) a targeted fix to make grandfathered Western Zone teachers whole plus a 1% commitment to all supplements; (2) raise the Western Zone supplement so it is harmonized for all zone employees and compensate grandfathered teachers for the shortfall; or (3) begin impasse procedures. The district answered with a counterproposal to distribute the $28,003 across the entire bargaining unit — an additional roughly $25 per person — and later presented an alternative that added $75 per enrolled employee to the school board’s contribution to health savings accounts for those in the high-deductible health plan. Finance testified the $75 HSA add-on would exhaust the remaining funds.

Carter Morrison, the district's assistant superintendent for finance, summarized the arithmetic: the union’s original large supplements proposal would have cost roughly $600,000 and was not affordable within the locally available raise pool; the district’s final counter used the remaining $28,003 to provide modest across-the-board relief or, as a second option, a targeted health-savings contribution that would fully expend the remaining pool.

The hearing record includes spreadsheets and exhibit documents costing out each alternative, the grievance and settlement documents for the Western Zone shortfall and the January 2023 MOA. The parties did not resolve the allocation issue at the hearing; the district says it has already implemented the $3,100 payments and advanced a health-insurance supplement option, while the union maintained its request to make grandfathered teachers whole.

Provenance: topicintro at transcript block s=381.555 where the union introduced the Western Zone matter; topic discussion and exhibit submissions continue through the session exchanges and closing proposals (topicfinish around s=8161.92).","Negotiators debated how to spend roughly $28,003 left in the bargaining raise pool and whether the Western Zone supplement should be harmonized or preserve a higher, grandfathered payout. The parties also moved funds to a health-insurance supplement in a later counterproposal.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6117551,"District seeks to rewrite personal and campaign-leave language; union resists changes",876,3257000,4133000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2729826-8feaf7c1ee3c96dd24482df9c1c47847&start=3257&end=4133","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2729826-8feaf7c1ee3c96dd24482df9c1c47847/thumbnail_3257000.jpg","/articles/6117551/Florida/District-seeks-to-rewrite-personal-and-campaign-leave-language-union-resists-changes","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6117551-857614f57d4c2a1c7d0696948dec54e2/orig.mp4?Expires=1770801151&Signature=G3CS6H1iIA9pojnAU~ikzeBXSd5~kKc-QSFjDNM~wxzIemcBMOA2psItkES50smFVbtf8MOFwWi1wr4WnhWbnIzYIE9fmTbOzR4wz1bTMT6wQoT4XlQRQ0Gb7gLg9Lx2gSiifHs1Y1Z1TcxK3ynHLZASQHud9dgg4zpdRJlXzt2aD60yWUL5blZFdsZXox-enyIopt2~C6RX9lTW6y1vy0NdBCA46qj94rDuFivUIncB7cXvQcByKq2NI6~~blzXnbiFt5BvnD66m6kj4tLXecEuznMI8xupJRPDCfDTAHJYjzd6XlfOX3U3munrF0SJFyDN9AtSWkf7CMWebX5xyA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Martin County School District proposed revisions to Article 11 of the collective bargaining agreement that would replace the contract’s existing personal- and campaign-leave language with provisions the union says are ambiguous and administratively damaging.

Union witnesses told the special magistrate the district’s changes would remove longstanding protections that have allowed bargaining-unit members unpaid leave for activities such as campaigning for public office or serving in association roles. \"We couldn't recall a a point in time ... in which anyone ever utilized this language,\" Martin County Education Association witnesses said of the campaign-leave provision, but added that the clause had existed for decades and carried no district payroll cost because the leave is unpaid.

The district’s representatives said they want clearer, operational language and pointed to options already available under general unpaid-leave provisions. Jeff Slinker, counsel for the school board, said administrative concerns — how leave requests are evaluated, who decides what is \"efficient operation,\" and how to maintain uniformity among campuses — motivated the proposal to revise the article.

Union negotiators said the district’s proposed wording replaced a limited set of objective restrictions (for example, not taking personal leave immediately before a holiday) with vague tests based on whether approving leave would preserve the \"efficient operation of the district school system\" and \"consideration of what is fair to the employee.\" The union argued the new phrasing would give principles wide discretion and lead to different leave practices across campuses.

On presidential-release leave, the union said removing or striking the dedicated provision would roll back a negotiated right and hinder union leaders’ ability to represent members during the day. The district said some functions of the presidential-release mechanism could be handled by existing unpaid-leave provisions without special administrative arrangements.

No final decision was reached at the hearing. The union described its position as \"no appetite\" for the proposed changes and urged the special magistrate to preserve the current language, while the district described the rewrite as a reasonable step to address administrative and compliance concerns.

Provenance: topicintro at transcript block s=3257.15 (discussion of personal leave and article opening) through later bargaining minutes and exhibit clarifications near s=4242.47.","The Martin County School District proposed striking and rewriting parts of Article 11 that govern personal leave, campaign leave and other unpaid leaves; the union called the changes regressive and said the revisions would create inconsistent campus practices and remove long-standing protections allowing unpaid campaign or association leave.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Union and district at odds over implementation of presidential-release leave after arbitration ruling

Union, district fight over $28,003 raise pool and Western Zone supplement after MOA and grievance

District seeks to rewrite personal and campaign-leave language; union resists changes