Officials from Denver’s teacher union and the district bargained through the night until 5:30 this morning and were back at the table just after 9 a.m. today, according to the union president.
The two sides are working with a professional mediator on resolving a labor dispute and are trying to hammer out a contract for Denver’s 4,500 teachers. The current contract expires Aug. 31.
Both sides have been asked to deliver counterproposals today, said Kim Ursetta, president of the Denver Classroom Teachers Association. Mediation is expected to continue through Friday and possibly into the weekend.
Denver teachers will convene at 3 p.m. Sunday at South High School to vote on accepting a resolution or determining their next actions if there is no agreement.
The union has asked its members to prepare for a strike if a compromise is not met.
The key point of contention is over the district’s proposed changes to the alternative pay system called Professional Compensation System for Teachers, or ProComp.
The district is proposing a different way to distribute the ProComp tax money, effectively giving more dollars to younger and newer teachers.
The DPS plan would halt some of the raises built into ProComp after a teacher’s 13th year and continue to provide incentives for teaching at hard-to-serve schools; teaching tough classes, such as math or special education; and being at high-performing schools.
The district wants more money for incentives, increasing them almost threefold to $2,900 apiece in an effort they say will better attract and keep younger teachers.
The union doesn’t want those ProComp raises removed for veteran teachers and is asking for a 3.5 percent raise for all teachers. They say removing the base-building elements will affect a teacher’s retirement and leave teachers unclear about how much money they will make year to year.
Jeremy P. Meyer: 303-954-1367 or jpmeyer@denverpost.com
