BELLE VERNON, Pa. — The Belle Vernon Area Education Association (BVAEA) and school district officials reached a tentative agreement on a new contract early Tuesday morning.
The BVAEA announced in a press release last Friday that teachers would go on strike at midnight Tuesday in “direct response (to) Superintendent Dr. John Wilkinson rescinding a promise to finish negotiating the entirety of a successor agreement after 400 days without a contract.”
However, the association said it was willing to extend the deadline to 2 a.m. Tuesday in order to avoid a strike after a majority of the Belle Vernon Area School board agreed to return to the bargaining table. An agreement was reached around 1 a.m.
FREE APPS | NOW | FACEBOOK | TWITTER
- Oops! Boy trips at museum, punches hole in $1.5M painting
- 'LOL' instead of a tip? Waitress receives unwelcome note on receipt
- GALLERY: A look back at Hurricane Katrina 10 years later
- Washington County heroin epidemic is making national headlines
"Our hope is to settle this contract tonight so that there will be no strike, and there will be a minimal disruption of the education process so that our students return to the classroom without delay," said Matthew Horzempa, president of the BVAEA. "Our members are willing to negotiate for as long as it takes until we reach an agreement that is fair and equitable to all parties."
Horzempa told Channel 11 that the district verbally agreed nearly two weeks ago to a list of concessions, including a complete salary freeze for all teachers for the first year, no significant changes to the salary schedule for the last four years of the contract, a 25 percent increase in members’ health care premium share and fewer fringe benefits, in addition to a modest wage increase for only the most-experienced teachers.
"Obviously, the settlement is not about money. All of these concessions were made to avoid a strike,” Horzempa said.
The union released the following statement:
"We look forward to continuing to move forward together with the Board in creating the best education environment possible for the students of the district."
Despite the agreement, classes were cancelled Tuesday. Students were to report Wednesday.
Once the new contract is ratified, it will be in effect through 2018.