A tentative contract has been reached between Vancouver Public Schools and a union representing classified staff that could avert a strike going forward.
The two sides announced the agreement via email late Monday night.
The exterior of Vancouver Public Schools main offices, pictured Aug. 12, 2020. The district has reached a tentative agreement with a union representing classified staff that could stave off a potential strike.
Troy Brynelson / OPB
“We are pleased to have an agreement we can bring to our members for a vote,” Vancouver Association of Educational Support Professionals President Chipo Sowards said in a statement. “Our bargaining team believes this is a fair, solutions-based deal.”
Neither the district nor the union provided details about the proposed deal. In an email to families, the district called it “a fair contract.”
The tentative agreement has to be voted on by union membership by Oct. 1. It would then need to be approved by the VPS school board during its next meeting on Oct. 14.
The Vancouver Association of Educational Support Professionals represents more than 800 classified staff, including paraeducators, American Sign Language interpreters and secretaries, according to the union. The two sides have been negotiating over a new contract since April. Negotiations have been ongoing since the school year started in late August.
Union members voted Sept. 11 to authorize their bargaining team to initiate a strike if it was unable to reach a deal with the district.
The potential labor action followed two other strikes in Clark County that were resolved last week.
Teachers and administrators in the La Center School District resolved a strike on Sept. 11 that lasted more than a week. The union went on strike in early September, shortly after the school year started. Teachers had been negotiating with the district over cost-of-living adjustments in their four-year contract.
Classified staff with Evergreen Public Schools began the year 12 days late after a contentious bargaining process that involved weeks of picketing in front of schools and the district office. The Evergreen union ultimately reached a compromise on salary increases for a three-year contract.
