Pulaski County Special School District teachers are one step closer to a new contract. Sunday afternoon, the Pulaski Association of Classroom Teachers, or PACT, unanimously ratified a tentative agreement to present to the school board.
"I don't think anyone discussed striking. We knew we could work together. We knew we could collaborate. There were some things that we had to get through, you know, different interpretations here and there, but when you finally look at the overall agreement, you say, hey, everybody benefits from this," said PACT President Marty Nix.
Contract negotiations started in April. One of the biggest issues at stake is salaries. Sunday's tentative agreement includes two-percent raises.
"Money is a hot topic right now, and the board and our negotiations team has been very contentious about the economy and what's going on around the other parts of Pulaski County and the other school districts, so we're trying to weight the pros and the cons and come up with a happy medium for both parties," said PCSSD Board President Tim Clark.
So what happens next? Clark says the board will likely call a special meeting with one thing on the agenda- the PACT contract. "We can bring it back to the board and agree or disagree with what they have ratified and close this issue out and move on with educating the children," he said.
"There will be a retroactive check, retro check issued, and retroactive salary, and we're wanting to, and I know the board has made many statements about wanting our people, our teachers and the employees to have retro checks before Christmas, and, hey, wouldn't we all love that," added Nix.
The teachers' union has a continuous contract, so the old one stays in place until both sides agree on the new one.
