On Saturday, December 6, the BFT and BOE attended a brief arbitration hearing and agreed upon a stipulated settlement of the 2015-18 contract. A complete copy of that contract can be found here BFT Contract 2015-18

For convenience, here is a salary comparison of the current school year side by side with the 2015-18 school years.

More details and a general membership meeting, including a Q and A session, will be arranged for next week. Below is a summary of the settlement details.

Duration

The contract will last for 3 years, from July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2018.

Insurance

Bristol teachers will keep their current PPO insurance plan, with some changes to our contributions.

Currently teachers pay 16% cost share. That will increase to 18%, 19%, and 20% in each of the respective three school years.

Co-pays will also increase. Currently teachers pay $15. That cost will increase to $20 for a visit to a general physician, $40 for a specialist. Emergency room visits will be $100. More details of the health plan can be found on p.43 of the new contract.

Some perspective on this issue: Most districts in the state either have a high deductible health plan (HDHP) exclusively, or have it as an option. Most with it have at least $4000 out-of-pocket expenses, often with no BOE contribution. Each year fewer districts offer the PPO. Of those that still have a PPO, most are already paying 20% cost share. Cost share is the total actual insurance cost for an entire group, divided equally among them. It is not a percentage of your salary.

Salary

There will be a 3% increase to the salary each year. This amount allows for a full step increase in years 1 and 3. To more evenly distribute salary increases, a new step has been added. In 2015-16 it is step 11A. In subsequent years it is step 13. Please read the explanations of steps at the bottom of the A-1 salary schedule in the contract, starting on p.47.

Some perspective on Salary: Bristol continues to have almost half of its teachers on top step. A step increase absorbs almost 2% of any salary increase. We are mindful of helping our entire membership advance, both those on at the top step and those working their way up. Please use the salary comparison above to review your own circumstances within the new salary schedules.

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