MINNEAPOLIS — The union representing Minneapolis public school teachers is the latest to formally ask for help from the state to negotiate a new contract with the district.
"This is another step towards a more safe, stable and strong Minneapolis Public Schools," said Greta Callahan, president of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers.
In a statement, the MFT says that it "has met with the district in seven negotiation sessions. To date, it says it hasn't received the district’s financial proposal, nor a response to the union’s opening proposal for an 8.5% salary increase in the first year of the next contract and 7.5% in the second."
In a statement, Minneapolis Public Schools said they were "saddened" by the request, saying they believed they made "significant progress" during their sessions.
The full statement reads:
We are both surprised and saddened by the MFT (Teacher Chapter) request to file to move into mediation after just five sessions. We have made significant progress on reaching an agreement and our sessions, including the session on the date that MFT shared this request with MPS, have been productive. All of the sessions have been livestreamed and archived. Pursuant to state law, mediation is confidential and closes the process to the public, which is why it is our hope that we can continue bargaining in the manner which we have, in order to reach agreement as quickly and transparently as possible.
The School Board agreed to consider the request to jointly file for mediation as quickly as possible; however, the opportunity was not given by MFT for the School Board to meet in advance of their filing, as a public notice period is required by law. Regardless of MFT’s rationale, doing so without giving the Board an opportunity to meet and process gives the impression to our community that we are not making progress. Our goal is to keep everyone informed of negotiations progress as transparently as possible.
St. Paul and Anoka-Hennepin teacher unions will also enter into mediation with the state.
This comes at a time when settling contracts is moving unusually slow for districts all across the state. In fact, the statewide teachers union, Education Minnesota, says at this same time four years ago, 185 districts had settled. That number dropped to 155 in 2021 to now just 98 that have settled. Teacher contracts are renegotiated every two years.
"The level of emotion amongst our members is pretty high right now," said John Wolhaupter, the lead negotiator for Anoka Hennepin Education Minnesota.
The Anoka-Hennepin School District says AHEM filed for mediation with the Bureau of Mediation Services on Nov. 22, and the first session is scheduled for Jan. 3, 2024.
The district and AHEM also entered mediation in the last contract period.
"I think the positive is that the mediation process really does provide a good outlet for driving towards a settlement," said Wolhaupter. "I know both sides remain committed towards that settlement."
In a statement, the district says it, "is committed to the goal of improving terms and conditions for employees while working within tight budget parameters to maintain financial and operational stability for the district."
Pay raises remain a top priority for many unions, especially since the legislature backed billions of education dollars this past session.
"We are definitely using every bit of resource we have," said the Bureau of Mediation Services Commissioner Johnny Villarreal.
The agency helps many sectors, including public school districts, resolve about 235 petitions a year. Villarreal says it has five mediators that serve the state, but it's not experiencing any backlogs.
"Some mediations we come into and they're just talking about wages or one or two issues, and we may walk into another mediation where there are dozens of issues that are open and unresolved," said Villarreal.
He says what is increasing now is the number of strike notices his office receives — a trend growing all across the country.
"We want to get the parties together as soon as possible, and we have been settling the majority of those cases," said Villarreal.
A spokesperson for Minneapolis Public Schools released the following statement:
We are both surprised and saddened by the MFT (Teacher Chapter) request to file to move into mediation after just five sessions. We have made significant progress on reaching an agreement and our sessions, including the session on the date that MFT shared this request with MPS, have been productive. All of the sessions have been livestreamed and archived. Pursuant to state law, mediation is confidential and closes the process to the public, which is why it is our hope that we can continue bargaining in the manner which we have, in order to reach agreement as quickly and transparently as possible.
The School Board agreed to consider the request to jointly file for mediation as quickly as possible; however, the opportunity was not given by MFT for the School Board to meet in advance of their filing, as a public notice period is required by law. Regardless of MFT’s rationale, doing so without giving the Board an opportunity to meet and process gives the impression to our community that we are not making progress. Our goal is to keep everyone informed of negotiations progress as transparently as possible.
As for St. Paul, the district and union filed jointly for mediation on Dec. 8.
In a statement, the district says, "We are proud to offer one of the highest average salaries for teachers in Minnesota. At the same time, SPPS is facing a significant budget shortfall due to rising expenses and the expiration of federal COVID relief funds in 2024. With 80 percent of the district's budget going to employee wages and benefits, settling a fair and financially sound contract is a top priority."
In a statement, the union says, "Its top priorities include more staff for mental health teams in every building, increased compensation to recruit and retain educators and staff, lowering health insurance costs, and reducing caseloads and providing additional resources for educators working with students with special needs."
MORE NEWS: Government worker pay rankles GOP lawmakers
Watch more local news:
Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist:
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.