Modesto teachers approve hard-fought contract

The Modesto Teachers Association overwhelmingly voted for its 2015-16 contract, closing the books on one of the most tense and protracted negotiations in recent years for Modesto City Schools.

Thursday’s vote after school at Downey High School went 565-27, said MTA President Doug Burton by email Thursday night.

The vote included about 40 percent of union membership, with 95 percent giving a thumbs-up to the deal. The contract gives teachers a 6 percent higher starting point as they begin negotiations for 2016-17.

The vote clears the way for checks to roll out with a 4 percent hike retroactive to July 1, plus an additional 2 percent that took effect in January. For a teacher making the average 2015 salary of $82,285, the increase equals $4,114 more for this first year and $4,937 higher base pay going forward.

The deal will cost the district $9.2 million outright, with an additional $4.6 million for the year anticipated as other employee groups and administrators receive equal bumps under “me-too” clauses in contracts settled for less.

The still six-member Modesto City Schools board came within one vote of denying the contract at its Feb. 29 meeting. Trustees Cindy Marks and Amy Neumann voted against the deal, citing concerns about the ongoing cost. A 3-3 split would not have allowed the deal to move forward.

At its next meeting, Chad Brown will join the board after his Feb. 1 appointment to fill the seat of Desiree Romo, who resigned in January. Candidate Rickey McGill, who came in second in the board’s two-step voting process, told the board Feb. 29 he will formally protest his loss.

This story was originally published March 11, 2016 at 3:06 PM with the headline "Modesto teachers approve hard-fought contract."