HSTA urges ratification of new two-year contract
By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer
The union that represents Hawai'i's 13,000 public school teachers recommended yesterday that its members ratify a two-year contract settlement that will provide raises of 4 percent to 7 percent.
Under the tentative agreement reached late Wednesday night, starting teacher salaries will increase nearly $2,200, to $36,486 per year. Teachers at the top of the scale will get raises of more than $2,500, to $66,203.
Teachers will take a ratification vote on the proposed $27 million contract package on May 13. If approved by the teachers, the contract will be retroactive to July 2003 and expire at the end of June 2005.
"This is the first step to paying teachers what they deserve and it's the first step to build on for recruiting and retaining the wonderful teachers that we have," said Hawai'i State Teachers Association president Roger Takabayashi.
He said the HSTA board voted unanimously last night to recommend ratification.
Robert Hu, who teaches American studies and ethnic studies at Mililani High School, said he was "quite pleased" with the settlement. Hu has been a Hawai'i public school teacher for 36 years and was named the state's teacher of the year last October.
"At least it will keep us up with inflation. At least we're not going backwards," Hu said. "The initial offer by Governor Lingle was just $5 million, which was a slap in the face."
This fall most teachers will get a "step increase," or advancement to the next pay grade, for a raise of about 3 percent. Next year most teachers will receive another step increase as well as a 1 percent raise.
The first step increase, to take effect at the beginning of the 2004-05 school year, applies to teachers on Steps 3 to 14; teachers on Step 14A, the highest step, will get a 3 percent raise.
The second step increase, which takes effect in the middle of the school year, applies to teachers on Steps 4 to 14.
"Having two increments is a major part of this package and we're very pleased with that," Takabayashi said.
But he said an estimated 400 teachers who are expected to retire at the end of this school year will not see any of raises because the contract has no retroactive pay. Takabayashi asked that these teachers reconsider, especially with the current teachers shortage.
"We really would like them to stay. We need their expertise and talents in our schools," he said.
Takabayashi said contract talks will begin in November on another new contract and the union will be seeking further salary increases.
"We still have to build up a better base salary to recruit teachers. Thirty-six (thousand dollars) will still not recruit as well as we would like to," he said.
The state and HSTA reached the agreement after more than 10 hours of negotiations at the union's Moanalua headquarters Wednesday.
Before the settlement, the state's last offer to the teachers called for no raises in the first year of the contract and 1.5 percent across the board in the second year, plus a 2.62 percent step increase. The union had asked for 5 percent raises in each year.
Starting teachers make $34,294 a year, with the average teacher salary at $45,167.
The two sides had set yesterday as a deadline to reach an agreement in order to meet a legislative deadline for lawmakers to approve the money by today, to avoid calling a special session.
In 2001, contract talks broke down and the teachers went on strike and shut down Hawai'i's public schools for three weeks. A contract agreement was reached, giving the teachers raises totaling 18.5 percent over two years. That contract was extended for a year to allow the state and HSTA to work out a new salary deal.
Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8025.
