By Stephen Floyd
One year of collective bargaining wrapped up early Tuesday after the Silver Falls School District (SFSD) and the Silver Falls Education Association (SFEA) reached a tentative agreement on a three-year contract.
Details have not yet been publicized, with the district saying finalized language was “forthcoming.”
This averts a potential strike April 24 which had been pre-authorized by the union March 17 after they declared an impasse in mediation.
Union members and the SFSD Board must still vote to approve the contract, which would be retroactive to the start of the school year and expire in 2025. No future board business meetings were scheduled as of Tuesday evening.
The contract was tentatively approved at 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 18. Assistant Superintendent Dan Busch said in an email to staff shortly afterward he was grateful for the effort that went into reaching a negotiated solution.
“Thank you for the hard work and late hours to see this work through,” said Busch.
SFEA said on Facebook their bargaining team was “exhausted, but we are proud we got the contract our members deserve.” SFEA had pressed hard for class size policies that would clearly define an oversized class and offer solutions to help teachers manage a large workload.
“Thank you so much to our members and the community for your outpouring of support through the whole process,” said SFEA.
Bargaining began in April of 2022, and the school year started with teachers under the prior expired contract. At issue were class size standards, teacher pay, grievance procedures and similar items.
SFEA wanted pay that was competitive with similar districts nearby, specific class size goals with clear policies to resolve issues, and grievance producers that were open and equitable. The district wanted policies that allowed principals and administrators flexibility in solving problems, did not hold them accountable for factors they could not control, and did not create unsustainable financial burdens.
By December of 2022, both parties felt conventional negotiating was not producing results and they agreed to enter mediation. The first mediation session was held in February, and the April 17 session was the sixth to be held.
As bargaining was prolonged, SFEA members and their supporters demonstrated in Downtown Silverton April 4 and 14. Teachers said the union had not held such a protest before, and this was evidence of how committed they were to what they felt was a fair contract.
