HUNTINGTON, Ind. (Indiana’s NewsCenter) - The Huntington County Community School Corporation has been targeted in a lawsuit.
The Huntington County Teachers Association filed the lawsuit on September 15, 2011, claiming that teachers are entitled to automatic salary increases for the 2011-12 school year as required by Indiana law and the Agreement.
The HCTA is being backed by the Indiana State Teachers Association in the lawsuit.
Similar lawsuits have been filed in Noblesville and Madison, Indiana.
However, On July 1, 2011 a new state law went into effect that makes it illegal to give teachers raises, if they have an expired contract and have not agreed to a new contract.
The teachers union and the school district are currently in contract negotiations.
IC 20-29-6-16
Continuation of existing agreement; circumstances
(b) Upon the expiration of the current contract that is in effect, the school employer shall continue under the terms of the current contract that is in effect, with no increase or increment in salary, wages, or benefits for any bargaining unit employee until a new contract is executed, unless continuation would put the school employer in a position of deficit financing due to a reduction in the employer's actual general fund revenue or an increase in an employer's expenditures when the expenditures exceed the current year actual general fund revenue.
Superintendent Tracy Shafer said the district has recently taken steps to reduce their budget by $2 million dollars, by closing two schools, laying off employees and implementing other cost cutting measures.
"We've made a lot of cutbacks over the last year that have just begun to get us in a position of being more financially stable and now for the next year we're anticipating a decline in enrollment which will have a corresponding decline in revenue," explained Shafer in an exclusive interview with Indiana's NewsCenter.
However, because the district lost 161 students, Huntington will receive about $1.2 million less in state funding in 2012.
Shafer said that means Huntington County Schools can't afford raises.
The district will actually have to implement additional cuts.
"So not only legally, can we not pay a raise or incremental wage increase to our certified employees (teachers) but we also have a position where we need to make sure we're frugal with our spending," Shafer concluded.
School officials also believe that the lawsuit is an attempt to circumvent bargaining and get around new education-reform laws.
The Huntington County Community Schools Corporation has filed an unfair labor complaint against the Huntington County Teachers Association and the Indiana State Teachers Association.
The lawsuit will move to courtroom in early November.
Indiana's NewsCenter is working to get a response from the Huntington County Teachers Association and the Indiana State Teachers Association.
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