Munster board hears proposed two-year tentative teacher contract with raises, PTO and benefit changes

The School Town of Munster Board of School Trustees heard a presentation on a tentative two-year collective bargaining agreement with the Munster Teachers Association at a special meeting. The proposal would give most teachers roughly a 4% raise in the first year (up to 4.7% for teachers meeting multiple eligibility factors) and about half those increases in year two, increase the district’s contribution toward employee health insurance, raise the district minimum and maximum teacher salaries and change paid-time-off and retirement-annuity provisions.

The tentative agreement matters to hiring and retention in Munster and is tied to state funding projections. “We are hoping to to settle a 2 year contract with the with the teachers association,” Dr. Hicks said while presenting the contract overview. Dr. Hicks also said certain pay criteria are required “per Indiana code.”

Under the proposal, year-one raises would come from five factors: evaluation rating (effective/highly effective = 1.9%), one year of service (additional 1.6%), an additional master’s in a content area (amount included in the model), participation in a professional learning community the prior year (0.5%) and an early-literacy endorsement (state-required differential). Dr. Hicks said the full 4.7% increase would be achievable only for a small number of staff who meet all factors; most employees would receive about a 4% increase. Dr. Hicks estimated 8–10 employees currently hold the early-literacy endorsement.

The district would raise its minimum salary from $55,000 to $56,200 and increase the maximum salary from $90,000 to $94,000 in the first year; the district would add another $500 to the minimum in the second year and keep the maximum at $94,000. Any raise amount above $94,000 would be treated as a stipend in the contract language, the presentation said.

On health insurance, the district proposed covering the first 1% of a premium increase in each year of the contract so that the entirety of the first-year raise would be a net pay increase rather than being offset by higher premiums. Dr. Hicks said the district expects premium changes when it goes to market and that any increase above 1% in year two would be passed to employees.

The presentation described incremental increases to the district retirement annuity contribution. Dr. Hicks described planned steps over time (increases after years three, five and 10 of service), and said the contribution would rise gradually from about 2.5% to 3% for employees with 10 years of service. (The presentation used the term “retirement annuity”; the contract language and plan identifier were not specified in the meeting remarks.)

Proposed paid-time-off changes include allowing up to three short absences per year (an hour) for medical appointments without using a full PTO day, a limit of 13 PTO days per year that may be used without verification or prior approval (down from 20), a requirement that absences before/after breaks be preapproved when practicable, and a revised PTO buyback rate tied to substitute pay. The district also proposed an “exceptional attendance” stipend model: $500 per semester for good/perfect attendance and a $2,500 stipend for perfect attendance for the full year. Dr. Hicks said two teachers last year had perfect attendance and that roughly six to eight additional teachers would have qualified for an “exceptional attendance” award.

The presentation included several new and revised addendum positions for extracurricular supervision and coaching across the district: expanded stipends for robotics coach, new sponsors (Best Buddies, debate, environmental science club at elementary buildings), additional coaching/assistant positions in boys and girls soccer, varsity flag football, cross country and new district roles such as an English-learner lead teacher to support compliance and instructional strategies. The extracurricular coordinator role would be restructured so the split position’s stipend is consolidated into a larger single stipend and supervisory duties are included in that assignment’s responsibilities; funds previously allocated to a friendship club were reallocated to other addenda.

Board members asked clarifying questions about implementation. Dr. Ricks asked, “what's the process of seeking prior approval?” Dr. Hicks said the district was building an approval workflow that would route requests for review and principal/HR approval, and that initial near-term exceptions (for a fall break close to a potential ratification) were possible. Dr. Hicks emphasized this was intended to improve classroom coverage planning and to support teachers.

No formal board vote on the tentative collective bargaining agreement was recorded during the meeting; Dr. Hicks noted the Munster Teachers Association had already ratified the agreement on their side. The meeting ended after a motion to adjourn, which passed 5–0.

Votes at a glance: Motion to adjourn — moved by Schwartz Wolf, seconded by Castro; approved 5–0.

Next steps were not specified in the presentation. The board announced the regular October school board meeting would be moved up one week because of fall break and that an executive session was scheduled for Oct. 20.