With the Chelsea Education Association and the Board of Education in fact finding over a new teacher’s contract, here is a statement from Superintendent of Schools Andy Ingall.
“The Chelsea Board of Education is negotiating with the Chelsea Education Association in a good faith manner,” he said, adding, “The Board of Education is adamant that negotiations with the Chelsea Education Association should take place at the bargaining table and not in the media.
“The Board of Education has proposed terms of an agreement that it believes are fair and in the best long-term interest of its students, staff and community. Given the uncertainty of school funding over the last several years, the Board of Education will not commit to increasing fixed costs (such as teacher salary and benefits) when it does not feel reasonably confident that it will have sufficient future funding to maintain those levels of expenditures,” he said.
A balanced budget relies on sufficient income to cover anticipated expenses, Ingall said. “In these uncertain financial times, the Board of Education wants to be sure it has sufficient reserves to maintain its current staffing and programming for students, even in the event of a limited increase or perhaps a decrease in state aid – both realities that have occurred in recent years.”
The District will continue to follow the terms and conditions of employment contained in the expired contract until the fact-finding process has been completed, Ingall said.
