The Anoka‑Hennepin Public School District board on Nov. 10 approved two multiyear master agreements covering building service employees and school technical specialists, and heard a status update on ongoing labor negotiations.

Dr. Cherry, the district’s chief human resources officer, presented the building service master agreement (represented by SEIU Local 284), which the district described as a two‑year tentative agreement including step movement both years, per‑hour increases (examples cited: a 45¢/hr increase to the top step, 5¢/hr for second/third shifts for certain roles and $1/hr for maintenance employees), and modest increases in district contributions toward benefits. The district characterized the first year of the package as representing roughly $867,000 in additional compensation but did not provide a single reconciled two‑year total in the public presentation. The board approved the building service agreement 6–0.

The board also approved a two‑year agreement for school technical specialists (represented by the Minnesota School Employees Association) that includes a 25¢/hr across‑the‑board increase each year, step movement and higher district benefit contributions; that contract passed 6–0.

Dr. Cherry then reviewed the broader labor landscape. She said teachers (represented by Anoka‑Hennepin Education Minnesota) remain in mediation after a Nov. 6 session and that proposals exchanged while in mediation are confidential. Cherry provided fiscal context for FY26, saying the district’s general fund is approximately $539 million and that salaries and benefits account for about 82% of that fund; she noted a 1% increase in salaries and benefits would equate to several million dollars in cost to the district, underscoring the budgetary constraints in negotiations.

Board members recorded no dissent on the two ratified agreements during the public session. The board moved to closed session later in the agenda to continue discussion of labor negotiations under Minnesota Statute 13D.03.

What happens next: settled contracts will be implemented per their terms; the district will continue negotiations with remaining groups and provide updates in public meetings as allowed by mediation confidentiality.