Board ratifies three-year dining‑services contract covering July 2024–June 2027

The Guilford Board of Education on Tuesday ratified a three-year contract with the district’s dining services employees represented by Unite Here Local 217.

Mr. Del Venturo, a member of the district’s negotiation team, summarized the agreement and its key terms before the board’s unanimous ratification. “We have a three-year increase of wages — year 1 is 3%, year 2 is 3%, year 3 is 3%,” he told the board.

Other terms Mr. Del Venturo outlined included adjustments to the insurance contribution schedule, changes to new-hire pay progression (the transcript records an increase in initial pay percentage during probation), extra-hour compensation for catering assignments (hourly rate plus a 25% premium), and a shortened internal posting period for vacancies to accelerate hiring (reduced from seven to four days). He also noted updates to uniform language to allow alternative uniforms in extreme temperatures by mutual agreement.

The contract covers the period July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027. The board voted to ratify the agreement without recorded opposition.

What this means: ratification formalizes wages and workplace rules for district dining staff for the coming three years and is expected to accelerate vacancy filling and standardize extra-hour pay for catering and events. Board members and the administration thanked members of the negotiation team and district staff for completing the talks.

The board did not attach other immediate budget votes to the ratification; implementation will proceed under the terms of the agreement.