The Juneau teachers union has declared an impasse in its negotiations over a new contract with the school district. Discussions will continue in the coming months with the help of a federal mediator.included a pay increase similar to the union’s. But the district also proposed cutting its monthly contributions to health premiums by $434. That’s more than a 25% decrease compared to this year.
The union and the district have been negotiating for 10 months. The previous contract expired in June. Several teachers expressed similar feelings at Tuesday’s school board meeting. Juneau School District Superintendent Bridget Weiss said it’s hard to hear. She said she’s hopeful they’ll reach a resolution soon, and the proposed health contribution cuts were meant to start discussions about where teachers wanted district funds to be allocated.