Hopatcong Board Signs Off on Aides' Contract

The Board of Education last week ratified by resolution the memorandum of agreement with the Hopatcong Education Association unit that represents teacher aides, custodians and cafeteria workers.

The three-year contact fight was settled in April when the sides agreed to accept the findings of the state mediator brought in to settle the contract.

School board president Clifford Lundin said the contract runs from June 2010 to June 2014.  The board Monday, however, only approved the  portion of the contract that covers the first two years, 2010 to 2012.

Lundin said that the board was advised by its attorney to follow a recent court decision that  limited such approvals to the first two years of a multi-year contract. He said the board will approve the 2012-14 portion of the contract at its July meeting.

The HEA unit represents 80 aides, called paraprofessionals, and 40 custodians and cafeteria staff.

Lundin said the contract provides custodians and cafeteria workers a 1.95 percent raise in  each year of the contract. Paraprofessionals will average 1.95 percent over the life of the contract, Lundin said, but will, get slightly less than that percentage in the first two years of the contract and slightly more than that in the second two years.