PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Philadelphia teachers union has voted to ratify its three-year agreement with the school district just days before its current contract was set to expire.
About 70% of members of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers on Thursday voted in favor of the agreement, which includes 3% raises in each of the three years and a $1,400 bonus to be paid this October.
Union President Art Steinberg said another important provision was the elimination of an unpopular rule that mandated teachers be disciplined when they reached three, five, seven and nine of their allotted 10 sick days.
“No. 1 request from them was, ‘I wanna be able to use my 10 sick days without any consequence or discipline.’ Now, they can. They do not even get anything put on their file till they hit an 11th day,” he said.
All new parents now also get five weeks of paid parental leave, after previously having to use sick days or take unpaid leave. Existing medical premiums stayed the same with no decrease in benefits.
Additionally, Steinberg said teachers who have completed 30 credits beyond a master’s degree will reach the top of the salary scale. Previously, it was 60.
“Which allows us to compete a little more with the suburbs,” he said. “We’re not up to them in salary yet; however, the structure of it makes it less likely for them to poach our teachers now.”
The union’s current contract was set to expire on Aug. 31.