JERSEY CITY – After running through a laundry list of complaints – not least of which was the demand for a 19 percent pay hike – Jersey City teachers, at the direction of their union leader, stormed out of the Oct. 16 Board of Education meeting.
Ron Greco, president of the Jersey City Education Association, spoke at the public portion and highlighted some other issues, then directed his membership to leave the building.
Board President Sangeeta Ranade said the district has made an offer to the teachers, which Greco has yet to bring to the union membership for a vote. She said the district is waiting for a state mediator, but is willing to meet with the union and continue negotiations before the mediator is assigned.
Both sides are generally mum on the details of the negotiations. Although no official numbers have been released, one report said that teachers are looking for a 19 percent increase in salary over the next three years. But teachers who also spoke at the Oct. 16 meeting also complained about a lack of textbooks, technology teachers, substandard substitute teachers, and the deplorable condition of school buildings, a third of which are 90 years or older.
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