Statement by Karen Aronowitz

President, United Teachers of Dade

on

Tentative Agreement on a New Contract

for M-DCPS Teachers and School Support Professionals

Late this evening, the United Teachers of Dade and school administrators reached a tentative agreement on a new three-year contract that will maintain high quality health benefits for district teachers while providing cost savings to the district by switching to self-insurance.  The new agreement also provides teachers with improvements in the salary schedule and step increases while protecting jobs.

 Last year teachers had a raise taken away and also sacrificed two days pay. These were significant sacrifices.

In response, UTD identified and recommended efficiencies that resulted in millions of dollars in savings and better budgeting practices. The former superintendent ignored these suggestions and claimed they had no value. When Superintendent Carvalho arrived, UTD again presented these innovations for the district to eliminate waste and operate more efficiently. This time the results were different.

The savings realized are enough to fund a new contract for teachers and school support professionals while providing continued health insurance benefits and salary steps and an enhanced salary schedule.

 While our teachers and school support professionals, who work so hard, deserve more recognition and pay, this contract marks an important turn of events. It starts us back in the right direction toward restoration.

Teachers want to know that they can trust this administration and this district -- this will be a critical issue in the ratification process.

Both sides have worked hard to reach an agreement.  Cost savings proposed by UTD in healthcare, as well as in operational and administrative areas helped to finance this agreement.  The administration should be commended for adopting the recommendations of their employees.