Clinging to posters and morning cups of coffee, Northvale Public School teachers protested for 10 minutes silently in the school parking lot. The teacher rally marked sixth months of work without a new contract.
"We have also placed signs in our car windows indicating the number of days we have worked without a contract," said Sharon Vadovic, co-president of the Northvale Education Association and physical education teacher.
The teachers’ list of grievances includes salary, health care and tuition reimbursement for college seminars.
Dianne Santoro, NEA negotiations chairperson and special education teacher, said that offers from the Board "have been well below the county average [salary increase]."
"The Northvale teaching staff is an outstanding team and we cannot accept a below average offer for performance that is well above average," said Santoro.
New Jersey Education Association spokesman Steven Baker reported that the average salary increase for Bergen County teachers stands at 4.62 percent. The average teacher salary for Bergen County is $64,923.
Out of 593 school districts in New Jersey, the Northvale district is one of 70 districts undergoing negotiations, according to Mike Yaple of the New Jersey School Boards Association.
Contract talks between the NEA and Board of Education began as early as March 2007, with little headway made on each side.
After the initial meetings failed, the Board asked District Superintendent Sylvan Hershey and Business Administrator John DiPaola to assist in the negotiation efforts. The state then appointed a mediator to help the NEA and Board facilitate an agreement, but those attempts also proved unsuccessful, said Hershey.
The teachers, who currently work under the 2006-2007 contract, cannot be compensated for any differences in retroactive pay based on the new salary rate until a new contract is filed, said the superintendent.
The next hearing is scheduled for Feb. 28.
Hershey said the initial factfinding hearing is one last effort for both sides to reach an agreement.
The NEA and school board cannot divulge any further details while negotiations are pending.
Although the Northvale school district is "not as militant as other districts," Hershey said that one of the adverse effects of not having a contract is that teachers may feel less inclined to volunteer services outside of their contract obligations.
Santoro agreed that the situation has dampened teachers’ spirits.
"Morale has been severely damaged by the lengthy time that we have gone without a new contract," she said. "However, we look forward to a successful outcome and hope to settle as soon as possible."
As the clock struck 8:25 a.m., the teachers headed toward the school entrance to begin a day of work as listed under the old contract.
"I would like to get this all behind us," said Hershey.
E-mail: gonzalezso@northjersey.com or call 201-894-6711
