West Aurora School District 129 paraprofessionals will receive wage increases plus stipends based on their roles with the district.
The West Aurora School Board Monday night unanimously approved a contract with the West Aurora paraprofessionals union that represents approximately 220 classroom support staff.
“We are very appreciative of the West Aurora Paraprofessional Association bargaining team. We think this new agreement reflects our current financial reality and at the same time allows us to acknowledge the difference between some of our paraprofessional roles,” said Angie Smith, assistant superintendent of operations.
Smith said the first year of the contract provides an average 2.85 percent increase, with a 1.85 percent increase in the second year of the contract. The two-year agreement begins July 1.
Additionally, some paraprofessionals will receive a $500 stipend depending on the area of their work.
“Those who provide support to some of our most physically challenged students, our learning media center para pros and our bilingual para pros (will receive stipends),” Smith said.
The agreement comes as the district is projecting a deficit for the coming year, and continues to face uncertainty about state funding. The district is also negotiating with two other unions.
The lack of state budget and uncertainty about how much the district will get from the state next year, whether it will receive back payments and whether there will be a budget is one reason the union and district agreed on a two-year contract, Smith said.
The uncertainty makes it hard to know what the district can afford and the resources it has to work with, she said.
“The biggest help for everybody would be if they could just resolve this,” she said. “Give us the budget, tell us what our number is, and then pay us on time. We can make things work if we know what we’re dealing with.”
She said the agreement doesn’t change the district’s projected deficit, because many of the increases in the contract, beyond what the district had already included in budget projections, is funded by adjustments made to insurance for newly hired personnel.
Rather than the 70 percent for a family and 85 percent for an individual funded by the district, the insurance will start at 50 percent and 65 percent funded by the district respectively. The district’s share will increase by 5 percent each year of employment with the district until a member reaches the 70 percent and 85 percent level.
The district, still facing a projected budget gap, has frozen administrative salaries next year, she said.
“I’m more concerned right now about money actually coming in the door, actually continuing to flow, than I am about the budget itself,” Smith said.
Smith said District 129 has five unions covering transportation, paraprofessionals, teachers, custodians and office professionals.
“We are currently still negotiating with teachers and custodians,” Smith said. “The paraprofessionals are our second largest group after teachers and a very critical part of how we best support our students and teachers every day.”
Smith said the previous agreement began July 1, 2014, and expires June 30.
“The concessions that were made on insurance, in addition to meeting the shared goal of helping to reward those with longer service to the district, will help us structurally moving forward as health care costs continue to increase nationally,” the assistant superintendent said.
Smith said the Illinois legislature did make some movement before ending its regular session last week which may help West Aurora.
“We are encouraged that there has been some acknowledgment by the General Assembly that the funding formula needs to be fixed. We are very concerned that we still have not received all of this year’s payments and very concerned given our limited fund balances that the pattern worsens in 2018 and 2019,” Smith said.
Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News
Beacon-News reporter Sarah Freishtat contributed.
