South Orange-Maplewood Teachers Union Declares Contract Negotiations Deadlocked

The South Orange-Maplewood Education Association has declared a formal impasse in contract negotiations with the South Orange-Maplewood School District and Board of Education following a Sept. 23 meeting.

The union, which represents teachers and other non-administrative staff, has been working without a contract since June 30, 2024.

In a statement, SOMEA representatives wrote that the district was asking “SOMEA to enter into a contract that offered a lower increase than our previous contract. This would in no way have closed the material gap we still face with our salary guide compared to neighboring districts that frankly have not had to endure the herculean problems present in this district due to the district’s incompetence and callous disregard.”

The statement said union members would “demonstrate our value by continuing to work under contract and express our outrage on Thursday, September 26 by marching in protest from South Orange Middle School at 6 p.m. to the board meeting.”

SOMEA leaders also accused Superintendent Jason Bing of “malicious attempts to pit the community against SOMEA and SOMEA members against each other.”

Village Green asked SOMEA President Rocio Lopez to explain the comments about the “malicious efforts” and provide details about the negotiations. Lopez said she would provide information at a later date.

Village Green also reached out to Bing and the negotiating team for comment.

In a statement shared with SOMSD families and Village Green late on September 23, Bing wrote that “the district remains committed to working toward a fair and equitable contract and is always open to further negotiations. We believe continued dialogue is the best path to reaching an agreement that supports our teachers, students and the entire school community.” Bing also shared specific information about the proposed salary increase rates currently being negotiated, writing, “If (the school board) were to meet SOMEA’s current 6% salary increase and massive longevity demands, it would mean program cuts, staff reductions and much less for our students.” See Bing’s full letter below.

Read SOMEA’s full statement here:

September 23, 2024

Your SOMEA negotiation team met on September 23 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. to prepare for negotiations. We have previously requested that the district negotiations The team respects our time and is ready to start on time at 5:00 p.m. At 5:10 p.m.
pm, Superintendent Bing came in to tell us the district attorney was showing up late, and they couldn’t start until 5:30 p.m. So, once again, the District left us The SOMEA negotiating team is waiting. Once they finally sat down at the table, we provided
our counter-proposal to the District’s meager proposal of September 12. It then took the District an hour to come back and provide a lower overall proposal that even last time, moving from a range in the first year to a specific range amounting to the lower end of this range for years two and three. The District ask SOMEA to conclude a contract offering a lower increase than our previous one contract. This would not have filled the material gap that we are still facing our salary guide compared to neighboring districts that frankly haven’t had to take on the herculean problems present in this district due to the inability and cynical contempt of the District. After many discussions, our SOMEA negotiations The team acknowledged the futility of any further discussion with the district team which failed once again to negotiate in good faith. After SOMEA declared an impasse, Board member Mr. Vadlamani responded, “Excellent.” Superintendent Bing did. don’t come back to the table.

In light of the District’s abject failure to present us with a proposal that even begins to recognize the value of our members and adequately compensate us for the growing demands of this administration, which seeks to do less and less and
always asking more from members, while benefiting from salary increases without any negotiation, combined with Superintendent Bing’s malicious efforts to transform the community against SOMEA and SOMEA members against each other, it is It is essential that we demonstrate our value by continuing to work under a contract and express our outrage on Thursday, September 26 by marching in protest from the South Orange Middle School at 6:00 p.m. for the board meeting.

SOMEA is worthy, and we will mobilize our members and the community to transmit the District that they must enter into an agreement that fully recognizes our value to this community.

Your SOMEA negotiation team,
Rocio Lopez – President, SCH

Shira Lincoln – Vice President of Marshall Elementary School
Patrice Massung – Negotiations Chair, Marshall Elementary School

Cheryl Hernandez – CHS
Lori Martling – CHS
Dallas Duffey – MMS

Read Superintendent Bing’s full statement here:

September 23, 2024

Dear Community,

I am writing to inform you that SOMEA (South Orange Maplewood Education Association) has officially declared an impasse in our ongoing contract negotiations with the district. Despite extensive discussions and efforts to resolve key issues, no agreement has been reached. While the union has taken this action, the district remains committed to working toward a fair and equitable contract and remains open to further negotiations. We believe continued dialogue is the best path to reaching an agreement that supports our teachers, students, and the entire school community.

As many know, the Board proposed and SOMEA agreed to meet on September 23rd prior to the scheduled October 8th negotiation date. SOMEA advised us in advance to prepare for a longer night of negotiations. Since transparency is important to the SOMSD (South Orange Maplewood School District) community, we would like to present the updated numbers exchanged during the negotiations.

From March 2024, SOMEA’s initial demand was 7.0% for three years (SY: 24-25, 25-26, 26-27). In July 2024, it was reduced to 6.95% for each year. The board proposed 3.0% at the July meeting. SOMEA’s demand in August was 6.5% for 2024-25, and 4-5% for 2025-26 and 4-5% for 2026-27.

At the September 12 negotiation session (Meeting No. 9), in order to advance negotiations, the Board proposed to negotiate in a range of 3.5 to 4.5% for 2024-25, 3 to 4% for 2025-26 and 3 to 4% for 2026-27. SOMEA responded with requests of 6.5% for 2024-25, 4.5% for 2025-26 and 4.5% for 2026-27, with a willingness to accept an increase of 4.0% in Years 2 and 3 if the Board increases longevity as follows:

After 10 years $5,000 (new)
After 15 years, currently $3,000/increase to $10,000
After 20 years, currently $3,500/increase to $15,000
After 25 years, currently $4,000/increase to $20,000

(Longevity (Refers to the length of an individual’s employment with a particular organization. It is often associated with an employee’s ability to maintain consistent, long-term service in their job or career path, demonstrating dedication, adaptability, and sustained performance over time.)

The proposed increase in longevity for current beneficiaries would result in an increase in costs of $2,564,300.

The council countered with a range of 3.5 to 4.5 percent for 2024-25 and increased its bargaining floor to 3.25 percent for the second and third years, knowing that such an increase in longevity would hurt the district financially.

Tonight, September 23, SOMEA responded with 6.0% for 2024-25, 4% for 2025-26 and 4% for 2026-27 and maintained the $2,564,300 increase in existing longevity payments and the new $5,000 longevity step for those with 10 years of experience.

At 6:30 p.m., the Council proposed 3.7% for 2024-25 and reiterated 3.25% for 2025-26 and 3.25% for 2026-27, which remains within the ranges it had proposed to SOMEA for negotiation.

Rather than counter the Board, at 7:30 p.m., SOMEA informed the Board that it intended to file a request for impasse. The Board does not agree that the parties are at an impasse and has so informed SOMEA. The county averages for the next three years are 3.77%, 3.78%, and 3.72%, which includes school districts that were major beneficiaries of increased school funding under the state formula; SOMSD was not such a beneficiary. SOMEA’s requests far exceed the county average and even more significantly exceed the state averages (3.73%, 3.59%, 3.56%) for three-year contracts beginning in 2024-25.

The board remains absolutely committed to continuing to negotiate a very fair contract, reflecting the county average. Our goal is to continue to pay our educators, over 540 of whom have earned advanced degrees. The board values ​​its teachers and wants to pay and support them while working within its budget. The board’s ultimate obligation remains to students by maintaining its programming offerings, arts, activities and athletics, special services, and ensuring students are prepared for post-secondary education and career opportunities. If it were to meet SOMEA’s current 6% salary increase and massive longevity demands, it would mean programming cuts, staff cuts, and much less for our students.

The board has proposed to keep the meeting date of October 8th. SOMEA has informed us that they are in the negotiation phase and will only accept another proposal from the board, even though the board made the last increased offer. The board wants to reach a settlement and believes that a very fair agreement can be reached that will not jeopardize the future of its students.

THANKS,

Jason Bing
Superintendent of Schools

Letter from the Superintendent – ​​September 23, 2024