The Wrangell teachers union and school board have agreed on a new three-year contract that starts this summer and includes a 1% raise each year and higher out-of-pocket deductibles for teachers enrolled in the district’s insurance plan.
The contract also includes an optional insurance plan with even higher deductibles that would reduce the share of premiums paid by the Wrangell Teachers’ Association.
Employers have been increasingly switching in recent years to high-deductible plans in an effort to stem the rising cost of health insurance.
The three years of a 1% raise will cost the district about $54,000, while the higher-deductible insurance plans will save the district about $40,000 over the term of the contract, Leeann Wiggins, district business manager, reported Monday.
Under the contract’s pay scale for extracurricular activity coaches and advisers, the new agreement adds a swim team coach, at $4,420 for a school year, and an assistant cross country coach, at $1,530.
The school board approved the contract at its May 17 meeting. The agreement takes effect July 1 and runs through June 30, 2024.
The contract boosts the annual deductible for the district’s standard health insurance plan for teachers from $500 for an individual and $1,500 for a family to $1,000 and $3,000.
The optional high-deductible plan is set at $3,000 a year for an individual and $6,000 for a family. Teachers who select the optional plan will be excused from contributing to the district’s health insurance premium costs.
The contract’s 1% annual raise in the pay scale is in addition to any increase a teacher may earn based on years of experience or additional college credits.
Most of the contract is the same as the previous three-year agreement between the school district and teachers.
Reader Comments(0)