Howell Teachers Ratify New Contract Howell Teachers Ratify New Contract

2/1/14 - Teachers in the Howell Public Schools district have voted to ratify a new contract. Teacher and HEA President Jay McDowell told WHMI on Friday that the Howell Education Association had ratified the tentative agreement. It was previously approved by the Howell Board of Education. The two-year deal runs through June of 2015 and features no salary increases for teachers during that time. It also features no risk-sharing agreement, which negotiator Tom White previously said was because the union does not trust the board enough to enter into such an agreement. The struggle to get a contract approved began last March, when a deal that was said to be much more lucrative with a larger savings and would help lead to financial stability was shot down by a minority of the board. The three members who voted against that proposed contract were Treasurer Doug Moore and Trustees Mike Moloney and Deborah McCormick. Board President Mike Witt and his wife, Kim, the board’s secretary, were prevented from voting on it due to conflict of interest legislation that went into law because Kim Witt’s sister is a teacher in the district. At the time, McDowell told WHMI that contract offered significant concessions to the district including guaranteed savings in health care. The newly finalized agreement goes into effect on Monday. (JM)