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District, union negotiators agree to split insurance increase; tentative agreement recommended
Summary
Negotiators reported a roughly 7.5% insurance premium increase and said the district and employees would split the cost consistent with current contributions; the negotiations committee voted unanimously to advance a tentative agreement.
Geary County Schools negotiators said the district and the employee bargaining unit reached a tentative agreement to apply a roughly 7.5% increase to health-insurance premiums and to split the additional cost according to the district’s existing contribution formula.
The negotiations presenter said the insurance committee met with 10 representatives and “voted a unanimous vote of 10–0 to accept those insurance rates” and recommended moving forward with a tentative agreement. The presenter said the new single-plan rate would rise from $6.37 to $6.85 per pay period (or per whatever unit appears in the handout), with the district’s share rising from $4.40 to $4.72 and the employee share rising from $2.13 to $2.34.
The presenter told negotiators the committee reviewed four proposal options and that the parties landed on continuing the current contribution split; the presenter also said the committee had expected a higher increase earlier in the year and that the 7.5%–8% range was a relative improvement from a previously anticipated 15% jump.
A district representative summarized the employee impact at the meeting: “Employees would be experiencing an increase of between $12.26 and $65.57, depending on employees’ choice of policy coverage,” and the board’s portion of the increase would range roughly between $32 and $93 per relevant pay unit, according to figures read aloud by the district representative.
The committee’s unanimous vote to accept the proposed rates was described at the meeting as a recommendation to the board; the presenters described the action as a tentative agreement subject to the district’s formal ratification processes.
Negotiators said plan option documents, last year’s rates, and detailed deductibles and coverage options were included in the packet distributed to members; the speaker urged members to review the packet for the complete plan options and deductibles.
No final board vote on insurance coverage was recorded in this session; negotiators described the committee’s action as a recommendation to advance the tentative agreement for approval through the district’s ratification channels.
