As you gear up for a new school year, HGEA wanted to give you an update on where we stand on various negotiation-related issues.
Unit 6 Collective Bargaining Agreement
Mahalo to all the educational officers who submitted proposals for the upcoming round of negotiations. Your negotiating team has been meeting monthly since January. We’ve heard you! The priorities we’re looking to address include:
- Pay inversion
- Repricing
- Restructuring the salary schedule
- Provisions for hazard pay
- Other compensation adjustments for recruitment and retention
The Unit 6 Collective Bargaining Agreement, the current four-year contract, will end on June 30, 2025. Last month, the union and the employer exchanged initial proposals for a new contract, which will go into effect on July 1, 2025. The parties hope to begin caucuses in the coming months once the Board of Education designates a board member to conduct labor negotiations on our contract.
Temporary Hazard Pay
You’ll recall that HGEA filed a class grievance and included Unit 6 with our other bargaining units. When the arbitrator ruled on his decision to grant hazard pay to Units 2, 3, 4, 9 and 13 employees in the DOE, he asked that the parties submit follow-up briefs arguing whether Unit 6 hazard pay can be settled in arbitration.
Last month, he ruled that this case can’t be decided in arbitration. He returned the grievance to the union and the DOE without a decision or recommendation on its merits.
Although we did not prevail in arbitration, we are committed to working with the governor and the superintendent to recognize the need for an equity adjustment for all EOs.
Stay tuned for an update as we continue this fight.
