After more than a dozen negotiation sessions at which no agreement was reached, Collier County public school teachers and administration are at an impasse, mainly over salaries.
The stalled negotiations may move forward after this week, when a magistrate meets in public hearings Thursday and Friday with attorneys for both parties to try to resolve the differences. At issue is base pay, which the teachers union wants raised by $3,290. The current base rate for Collier public school teachers is $57,000.
Because of the impasse, a state-mandated Teacher Salary Incentive Allocation is being held up because collective bargaining agreements were to be finalized by Oct. 1, 2025 for the money to be released. That amounts to $385 plus $220 for “highly effective” teachers.
The district has said it is committed to raising the base pay, which is independent of the TSIA monies.
Also at issue are bereavement pay, coaching supplements and changes to the grievance process.
If no agreement is reached between the parties, the issue will come before the board of education for a decision.
To Kenneth Mouton, president of the Collier County Education Association – the union representing teachers – the situation is dire.
"We have teachers that are selling blood plasma. We have teachers that are going to food banks in order to make ends meet, to feed their kids. The public doesn't know that, but they need to know that. Some of these teachers are living in their cars. Do you think they want to advertise that to the public? It's embarrassing."
The administration’s position is that it has consistently raised the base pay – by over 9 percent three years ago, over 12 percent two years ago and over 11 percent last year. And although the base pay is $57,000, the administration says the average salary is more like $74,000. But still pointing to the base pay, Mouton says it does not qualify as a livable wage and teachers are being lost to other counties.
"The district is being disrespectful to teachers when you offer them that kind of money based on the work and effort they put into the classrooms and into our youth, they serve our country, they serve our people, and they deserve better."
Discussions at school board meetings have been acrimonious, with the union claiming disrespect and the administration claiming misrepresentation of its stance.
Declining our request for an interview, the district issued a statement that says in part: “Because the parties have reached impasse, all remaining questions must now be addressed through the formal impasse hearing, which is the legal venue for presenting positions and clarifying details.
"Providing selective information ahead of the proceeding could lead to incomplete or out of context interpretations of complex bargaining issues.”
The meeting of the attorneys and magistrate will be live-streamed at 4 p.m. Thursday. To watch, go to www.collierschools.com/educationchannel.
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