Wyoming Valley West board says teachers have stalled contract talks over proposed 5% health premium share

President Khamis told the Wyoming Valley West School District board on March 11 that an executive session earlier that day had included discussion of the teachers’ contract and that negotiations were at an impasse because teachers had “refuse[d] to talk about it.” He said the board is asking teachers to contribute a 5% premium share toward health insurance and described the board as largely united on that position.

Finance committee member Wilson, speaking later during the finance report, emphasized the district’s fiscal position and offered figures the board used to frame the request: he said a full family health‑care plan costs “over $41,000 a year per employee” in the district and that the board’s proposal would equate to “$70 a paycheck for full family coverage, and $24 a pay for single coverage.” Wilson also said the district transferred $1,000,000 from general to capital funds and recently received a cash inflow of over $5,200,000 from the sale of delinquent real estate taxes, putting those figures into the context of budget planning.

The meeting transcript records no teacher or union representative making a public statement at the March 11 meeting in response. The board described its interest in containing health‑benefit costs to preserve resources for other district priorities and said salary negotiations have been constrained by the parties’ inability to engage further. No formal action on the contract was taken during the meeting; Khamis said talks were still ongoing and that the board’s position remained unchanged.

What’s next: The board did not vote on the contract terms at the March 11 meeting. The district’s negotiators and the teachers’ union are expected to continue talks outside the public meeting forum; the transcript does not specify a next bargaining date.