La Grande School Board approves three-year contract for its classified staff [The Observer, La Grande, Ore.]

Jul. 15—LA GRANDE — The members of the La Grande School District's classified staff are set to receive pay increases each of the next three years.

The La Grande School Board voted on Wednesday, July 13, to ratify a new three-year pact for its 175-member classified staff, which includes paraprofessionals, cooks, custodial workers, secretaries and grounds workers. The contract will provide the school district's classified staff with cost of living raises of 5% in 2022-23, 4% in 2023-24 and 3.5% in 2024-25.

The contract will also boost what the school district's classified staff members receive for health insurance premiums by $75 a month in 2022-23, $50.84 a month in 2023-24 and $50 a month in 2024-25. Classified staff employees will receive up to $1,449.16 per month for health insurance in 2022-23, up to $1,500 a month in 2023-24 and up to $1,550 a month in 2024-25.

"I'm very pleased that we were able to successfully negotiate a new contract," said La Grande School District Superintendent George Mendoza.

He said the school district's classified staff, which voted for the new contract earlier, has done excellent work for the past 2-1/2 years in a challenging environment due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"They deserve all of the support the school district can give them," Mendoza said.

The superintendent added the La Grande School District is committed to boosting the working conditions for its classified staff.

Leatha Canfield, president of the classified staff's Oregon School Employees Association bargaining unit, said she was impressed with how smoothly the negotiations went.

"I know that it can be a contentious process, but we were very well received and fairly treated. I feel that we were supported by the school district," said Canfield, who works as a behavior intervention assistant and a computer lab assistant for the La Grande School District.

A joint statement released by Canfield and Mendoza said both parties will continue working together as a team.

"We can all now turn our attention on strengthening our education programs, focusing on student learning, safety and fostering trust in our education system," the joint statement said.

In other action at the meeting, the board elected Randy Shaw as its chair for 2022-23 and Danelle Lindsey as its vice chair. Shaw is beginning his sixth year on the board and was vice chair in 2021-22. Lindsey has served on the board for eight years.

Shaw succeeds Robin Maille, who announced she was stepping down from the position after serving two years. Mendoza praised Maille for her work as chair, noting that she led the board during an enormously challenging period.

"You were the right person for that spot during a very difficult time," he said.

___

(c)2022 The Observer (La Grande, Ore.)

Visit The Observer (La Grande, Ore.) at www.lagrandeobserver.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.