Wilmar USD Teachers Approve New Contract

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — UPDATED: Teachers in the Wilmar Union School District near Petaluma will receive a 13-percent wage increase over three years and will get more money to pay for healthcare premiums, according to an agreement the teachers reached with the district Wednesday.

The teachers at the only school in the district, Wilson Elementary School, four miles west of Petaluma, were planning to strike Thursday if there was no agreement by then.

The teachers on Wednesday ratified the tentative agreement reached Tuesday evening, fourth-grade teacher Janice Garrigan said.

"The teachers are pleased to have been acknowledged and heard with a three-year contract," Garrigan, president of the Wilmar Teachers Association said.

The 5-percent, 4.5-percent and 3.5-percent raises over the next three years will be included in the school district's budget before the school board makes any budget reductions, Garrigan said.

The Wilmar Union School District also will contribute $950 a month toward the teachers' healthcare premiums — a $200 increase, according to Garrigan.

Teachers say they earn almost 25 percent less that the statewide average and that the district offers one of the lowest average teacher salaries in Sonoma County's 39 school districts. Teachers voted in August to authorize a strike if it was needed.

"Students' teachers are financially overwhelmed and struggle to afford basic necessities like rent and healthcare," Garrigan said in a statement Tuesday. "Wilmar will never be able to retain and recruit the best educators for our students without a long-term written commitment to fix this
situation."

Teachers said the school district's refusal to bargain in good faith forced negotiations into fact finding. The fact finder agreed teachers should receive a 5-percent wage increase for the 2019-2020 school year instead of the district's proposal of 3.5 percent, but the fact finder did not adequately address healthcare concerns for teachers with families, according to the teachers' association.

Wilmar Union School District Superintendent Sheila Garvey did not return a call for comment Wednesday on the agreement.

According to district officials, the average teacher's salary is $69,316 for a 186-day contract. When medical, dental, retirement and other benefits are included, total compensation rises to $90,111, according to the district.

District officials also said very few school districts grant large wages.

— Bay City News Service