Wichita teachers' union members strongly reject contract offer from district

Members of Wichita’s teachers’ union voted overwhelmingly to reject a contract agreement with the district over concerns about lack of salary increases, teacher workload and building safety in the pandemic, the union announced Friday.

The United Teachers of Wichita voted 85% no on the collective bargaining agreement. In all, 79% of union members voted. Representatives from USD 259 and the union will both return to negotiations.

The previous contract expired at the end of July. Without a new agreement, the old one remains in place. Teachers are not able to strike and not planning to do so, said Gabriel Costilla, vice president of the UTW.

In the past 30 years, UTW has only rejected a contract offer from the district twice, Costilla said. This year, negotiations were initially delayed, but began in August. Last month, the parties required a federal mediator after they reached an impasse and did not agree on compensation.

Read more: https://www.kansas.com/news/local/education/article247174291.html