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Fredonia board ratifies four-year SSSA contract with modest wage increases and procedural changes
Summary
The Fredonia Central School District Board of Education ratified a four-year contract with the Salaried Support Staff Association covering July 2025–June 2029 that includes base wage increases, step-related supplements, changes to grievance arbitration, and modest benefits updates; the contract was approved by voice vote.
The Fredonia Central School District Board on Nov. 4 ratified a four-year agreement with the Salaried Support Staff Association (SSSA) covering the 2025–26 through 2028–29 school years.
Superintendent Dr. Zilliox told the board the agreement includes an 80¢ base increase for 2025–26 plus additional increases tied to years of service (ranging from $0.20 up to $1.70), a straight 5% increase in 2026–27, a similar service-step structure in 2027–28, and a 4% increase in 2028–29. "All employees would get an 80¢ increase on their base," Dr. Zilliox said while summarizing the pattern of raises.
The contract also makes procedural and benefits adjustments, the superintendent said. It updates titles and recognition language so job descriptions align with the wage schedule, clarifies who from the union may participate in SSSA job interviews alongside district leadership, and standardizes grievance timeframes to avoid ad hoc additional meetings. For arbitration, the parties agreed to replace the American Arbitration Association with the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB), which administrators described as a less expensive and more user-friendly option.
Dr. Zilliox said the agreement defines "prolonged illness" for the sick bank as 20 days, moves pay to a semi-monthly schedule, clarifies payment for summer work and job-related training for clerical staff, and adds two bereavement days to the contract language.
Board members thanked negotiators on both sides. The board considered the contract in executive session at a prior meeting and discussed it in open session before voting. The resolution to ratify the contract passed on a voice vote; the transcript records the board saying, "All in favor? Aye," without a roll-call tally recorded in the public minutes.
What happens next: Implementation steps mentioned by administration include updating payroll schedules and disseminating contract details to affected staff. The superintendent thanked labor-relations representatives and district negotiators for what he described as a collaborative process.
Notes: Specific dollar totals for district cost impact and vote counts were not provided in the public transcript and are therefore not reported here.
