Published: July 25, 2008 11:05 pm            

KEN-TON SCHOOLS: District, workers reach new deal

TOWN OF TONAWANDA — Last week’s agreement between the Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda School District and its employees includes some compromises on both sides.

The board approved the agreements at a meeting on July 18, with Superintendent Mark Mondanaro saying the deals should be part of building and keeping the team he wants for the district.

“We believe these new contracts will stabilize the amount of clerical turn over that we have been experiencing in the past,” Mondanaro said.

Employees not represented by a union were placed into three categories based on their duties within the district. Level 1 includes hourly employees like clerical staff and head bus drivers, Level 2 covers salaried middle management employees like supervisor of transportation and school lunch manager, and Level 3 encompasses upper-management salaried employees like directors and assistant superintendents.

Under the new contract, Level 1 employees will receive a 5.2 percent raise each year, Level 2 will see 4.4 percent and Level 3 will get 4.5 percent. However, automatic raises at Levels 2 and 3 can be withheld if job performance is deemed unsatisfactory.

Health insurance premiums for Level 1 employees were also reduced from 10 percent to 6 percent, and the maximum number of sick days a person can collect was made the same at all levels.

In a separate deal, the Kenmore Administrators Association renegotiated its contract, agreeing to a longer work year starting in the 2009-2010 school year. The group will also pay 1 percent more toward their health insurance costs and take required leadership development courses each year.

In return, the district agreed to 3.9 percent annual salary increases, $75 annual contributions to administrator 105(h) plans and gave them the ability to sell back up to five unused days of vacation per year.

“The new set of contracts, in addition to the top level administrators hired over the past year, will bring strong leadership and stability to the district — something that has been needed for almost two years,” Mondanaro said.

        

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