Monona Grove Conflict Going to Mediation

The Monona Grove teachers contract dispute – which both sides blame in part on revenue controls – is headed for mediation.

School Board President Nancy Allen said the board would initiate the mediation process by seeking a list of mediators. Monona Grove Education Association President Annette Eisman said the union asked the board January 12 to go to mediation.

Both sides are blaming state-imposed school district revenue controls for exacerbating the contract dispute. Allen said that, because of revenue controls, there is no money available for boosting teacher salaries beyond what the district has offered, without cutting programs and services. Eisman disagreed that there is no money available. But she did agree revenue controls have complicated and stalled the negotiating process.

“Before revenue caps, if you were just $78,000 apart you wouldn’t get up from the table. You would stay there and you would settle it,” she said.

The district says it is offering teachers a total package increase of 4.1% in each year of the two-year contract. But Eisman said that estimate uses the misleading "cast forward costing" formula associated with the Qualified Economic Offer law.

After separating salaries and benefits and using actual dollars, she said, the board’s offer amounts to salary increases of 1.6% per year. The union is seeking salary increases of 2.5% per year in actual dollars and total salary and benefit increases of 4.6% per year.

Allen said the board is handcuffed by revenue controls, which she sees as an infringement on the authority of school boards to make financial and educational decisions.

“While I fully agree teachers should be making more money, we can’t just raise our mil rate and increase our income to cover the cost,” Allen said.

If it weren’t for revenue controls, she said, the board could consider asking district voters for more money for its teachers.

“At least we would have the opportunity to convince people this is the right thing to do,” she said. “But with revenue caps, no matter how compelling the argument is, we can’t do it.”

Posted February 7, 2000