CVUSD and Teachers Union Reach Tentative Agreement

Updated May 2, 9:10 a.m.

The and the Castro Valley teachers union reached a Tentative Agreement on April 27.

“We are extremely pleased to have reached a tentative agreement with CVTA that allows the district to maintain quality programs for another year and retain our quality teachers,” stated Board President Kunio Okui in a press release issued by the CVUSD on Tuesday morning.

Bargaining teams for both CVUSD and Castro Valley Teachers Association (CVTA) met in four sessions since March 26 of this year according to a CVUSD joint communcation release sent out to teachers on Monday.

They discussed items such as salary, benefits, technology, calendar and staffing ratios, which would be implemented for the next school year.

According to Mike Bush, CVUSD Deputy Superintendent of Business Services, "anything can happen along the way" in either party. The agreement isn't final until both parties ratify it.

CVTA will present the Tentative Agreement to its members on Thursday, May 3 for further discussion. Members will then have a chance to vote on May 10 and 11 according to CVTA Vice President Jason Berberian.

"I think our teachers will be pretty happy with the outcome," Berberian said.

If at least 50 perecent of CVTA memebers vote in favor of the agreement, the CVUSD board of directors will then review the agreement for final approval at the May 24 board meeting. At least three of the five board members must vote in favor for it to be ratified.

If the agreement is voted down on either side, Berberian said both parties will have to "go back to the drawing board" and come up with a new agreement.

In Tuesday's press release, CVUSD states that besides closely monitoring the district’s operating budget to reduce expenditures, the district also received unanticipated revenue from both the federal government and the Eden Area Regional Occupational Program (ROP) that allows the district to continue programs and services for the 2012-2013 school year. The unanticipated resources allowed the district to reach a tentative agreement that includes the following:

• Class sizes for K-3 grade will remain at 25:1 for the 2012-2013 School year.
• Class sizes for 6 through 12 Physical Education classes will not exceed 45-48 students.
• The District and CVTA will meet and negotiate any potential salary/compensation increases for the 2012-2013 school year after the November 2012 election.
• Speech and Language Specialists will compensated in the same manner as Program Specialists
• For the 2012-2013 school year, the District will contribute $6,000 toward maintenance of Health and Welfare Benefits.
• For the 2013-2014 school year, the District and CVTA will agree to the Instructional Calendar by March 1, 2013 and in addition the start date for 2014-2015.
• The Technology Advisory Council subcommittee will continue to meet and address technology issues.

Although this tentative agreement addresses issues for 2012-2013, future years depend on the outcome of the November 2012 election. CVUSD and CVTA agreed to meet after the November 2012 election to negotiate any potential salary and compensation changes for 2012-2013.

According to the joint communications release, both bargaining parties "worked collaboratively to share their interests and develop language to address each issue."

The release goes on to state that the Tentative Agreement "will close out negotiations for the 2012-2013 successor agreement." The current three-year collective bargaining agreement between CVUSD and the CVTA ends on June 30 of this year. 

Last month, the due to retirements, resignations, request for leaves, and schools using site carryover funding to hire back teachers.