Newton School Staff
Gains Wage, Key
Language Improvements
NEWTON, Iowa
Support staff of the Newton Community School District, organized as UE Local 898, have ratified a new two-year contract
that improves wages and insurance and strengthens the contract in several key areas.
Under "layoff and recall," the new contract allows for an employee to reject recall to a position with fewer
working hours than the previously held position and remain on the recall list for 18 months. Equalized overtime for custodians will now be
distributed on a rotational basis. Under "bus driver non-regular/activity trip distribution," priority will now be given to
full-time drivers before substitute drivers. Route assignments will now be posted for review to insure transparency.
The new agreement also sets guidelines for a new labor-management committee to address issues concerning the assignment of
paraprofessional duties. Also, union and management agreed on how and when custodial and maintenance workers start and end summer, winter,
and spring break schedules. Addressing the issue of banked compensatory time, employees may now carry compensatory time earned in June
(the last month of the district’s fiscal year) into July.
Negotiators also reached additional clarifications and improvements in the areas of rest periods, mileage reimbursement,
union access to seniority lists, employee access to official transfer request forms, employee access to workers’ compensation insurance
information and forms, and physical examination reimbursements for bus drivers.
On wages, all employees will advance on the longevity steps. The contract provides thirty longevity steps, one for each
year of service, ranging from $.05 to $.77 per hour for part-time custodians, food service workers, and paraprofessionals and $110 to
$1,850 per year for full-time custodians, maintenance workers and bus drivers. Wages will also increase by $.25 per hour across the board.
The two lowest paid classifications, paraprofessionals and part-time custodians, will also receive an additional $.10 per hour across the
board increase.
The local’s bargaining committee included Mike Hansen, Sharon Samson, Kendall Miller, Marvin Dunsbergen, Les
Baskerville, Karyl Engle, and Pat Farr. They were assisted by Field Organizer Ryan Downing.
UE News - 7/03
