Richmond Education Association

Building Union Power in RPS since 1971!

RPS School Support Professionals: Know Your Contract!

Preface

A contract is only as strong as the union which negotiates it, and a union is only as strong as its members. That’s right, as rank-and-file members of the Richmond Education Association (REA), we are the source of the union’s power. It’s up to us to formulate the demands our union brings to the negotiating table. It’s up to us to organize and mobilize our fellow workers. And it’s up to us to enforce our contract in our worksites. That begins with knowing our rights, and knowing our contract.

Your Rights Under a Union Contract

The Richmond City School Board’s 2018 Resolution on Freedom of Speech, 2021 Resolution on Collective Bargaining, and 2023-2026 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for Support Professionals (School Nutrition Services, Care and Safety Associates, and Instructional Assistants) negotiated by the REA, covers all employees in the following categories: School Nutrition Services (SNS), Care & Safety Associates (CSA), and Instructional Assistants (IAs). Under the Resolution and the CBA, employees have the right to: 

  • share information and talk about union activities and our CBA on the job;
  • distribute union literature at our worksites (including the CBA, newsletters, pamphlets, leaflets, books, posters, QR codes, copies of the relevant policies and resolutions, etc.);
  • convene union meetings at our worksites (including all-member meetings, one-on-one meetings between a member and our worksite’s REA Rep, etc.);
  • self-identify as union members either verbally or non-verbally (e.g., wearing a union button or shirt); and
  • File grievances with the Superintendent for any violation of the Resolution and our CBA. The grievance must be filed within thirty (30) business days of the event or from when you first found out about the event.

If administrators in your building are doing any of the following, they are violating the Resolution: 

  • Discouraging membership in the union, the union’s committees, or any other workers’ organization.
  • Discriminating in hiring, tenure, discipline, or other terms and conditions of employment on the basis of union membership or participation in union activities.
  • Discharging, retaliating, or discriminating against any employee because they have formed, joined, supported, assisted, or chosen to be represented by the union.
  • Discharging, retaliating, or discriminating against any employee because they have participated in collective bargaining, testified in a hearing, or filed a statement, petition, complaint, or grievance under the provisions of the Collective Bargaining Resolution. 
  • Refusing to negotiate collectively or bargain in good faith with the union.
  • Refusing to participate in good faith in any mediation, impasse or dispute resolution procedures as established by the Collective Bargaining Resolution. 
  • Opposing the appropriation of funds, supporting policies, or otherwise acting in a manner that would impair or interfere with the implementation of any CBA approved by the Richmond City School Board.

Sections I, II, and III : Preamble, Exclusive Recognition, and CBA Coverage

These sections introduce the two parties involved in contract negotiations: the REA (our union), and RPS (our employer). Section II and III state that this CBA covers school support professionals, specifically Instructional Assistants (IAs), School Nutrition Services (SNS), and Care and Safety Associations (CSAs). It is important to note that all RPS employees have the right to file a grievance regarding any violation of the CBA, as well as any other policy or law, regardless of union membership. However, REA Building Reps are only responsible for assisting union members with the grievance process, and should encourage non-members to join the union. 

Section IV, A.1: Compensation and Other Benefits – Student Nutrition Services

By the end of the contract in 2025-26, the starting pay for non-contracted Food Service Assistants will be $18.93 per hour. Each year’s increase is dependent on available funding, but the starting wage by the end of the contract will be $18.93. The union will negotiate with the School Board the exact amounts and/or percentages for the raise each year.

Section IV, A.2: Compensation and Other Benefits – Student Nutrition Services

By the end of the contract in 2025-26, the starting pay for Contracted Food Service Assistants will be $18.93 per hour. These employees are contracted and already receive benefits. Each year’s increase is dependent on available funding, but the starting wage by the end of the contract will be $18.93.

Section IV, A.3: Compensation and Other Benefits – School Nutrition Services

Supervisors for School Nutrition will have a starting salary of $61,987 for the 2023-24 school year. For the next two years of the contract, they will receive a combined raise of 5%, split over the two years. The increments will be based on available funding. REA will negotiate these raises with the Richmond City School Board. 

Section IV, A.4-5 : Compensation and Other Benefits – School Nutrition Services

For School Nutrition Managers, by the end of the contract the starting salary will be $40,000. The increments will be based on available funding. REA will negotiate these raises with the school board. 

The salary scale for all contracted SNS employees was decompressed, and all contracted employees are entitled to a 1.17% step increase each year of the contract.

Section IV, A.6-9 : Compensation and Other Benefits – School Nutrition Services

Without exception, all non-contracted Food Service Assistants will have from day one of their employment full RPS health benefits and three paid personal days. Paid personal days will not accrue from year to year. All SNS workers will receive support accessing the optional, matching retirement plan offered by RPS. All SNS workers covered by the CBA will have the right to participate in the SNS department hiring process. 

Section IV, B.1: Compensation and Other Benefits – Zone Supervisors, Administrative Security Supervisors, and Emergency Management Training Coordinators

Zone Supervisors, Administrative Security Supervisors, and Emergency Management Training Coordinators will have starting salaries of $48,573 for 260 day contracts and $40,353 for 216 contracts for the 2023-2024 school year. For the second two years of the contract, the raise will be a minimum of 2.5% each year. The increments will be based on available funding. REA will negotiate these raises with the School Board. 

Section IV, B.2: Compensation and Other Benefits – Care and Safety Associates

For Care and Safety Associates (CSAs), the starting salary for 2023-2024 will be $32,074. For the second year of the contract, the raise will be a minimum of 3%, and for the third year, the raise will be a minimum of 2%.The increments will be based on available funding. REA will negotiate these raises with the School Board.

Section IV, B.3: Salary Schedule, 4: Additional Duties Stipend

All CSA workers will receive a 1.17% step increase for each year of the contract. Lead CSAs will receive a 5% stipend of their current salary to account for their additional duties. 

Section IV, C.1-2: Instructional Assistants – Salary & Salary Schedule

For Instructional Assistants (IAs) by the end of the contract the starting salary will be $30,000. The increments will be based on available funding. REA will negotiate these raises with the school board . The salary scale for all IAs was decompressed, and all contracted employees are entitled to a 1.17% step increase each year of the contract.

Section IV, C.3-4: Instructional Assistants – Clarification of Non-exempt Status & Supplemental Compensation

The employer is responsible for letting principals know that an IA’s work day is 7 hours, not including breaks or lunch. Additional hours outside of this are voluntary and paid at the regular rate for hours 36-40, and past 40 hours a week, overtime pay is required (hourly rate x 1.5). Your time can’t be counted and carried over to the following week to skirt having to pay overtime. When an IA covers a class due to teacher absence, they’re paid $50 for a half day and $100 for a full day. 

Section V: Grievance Procedure

Worker(s), the REA, and RPS have the right to file a grievance if the contract has been violated. A grievance must be submitted to the division superintendent within 30 business days of its occurrence. To submit a grievance as an individual, include (i) the date of the event(s); (ii) a description of the event, (iii) the nature of the violation (e.g., specifying the specific language in the contract which RPS has failed to follow); and (iv) a statement of the relief requested. REA members can be supported by the REA Building Reps in their worksite or contact the REA office for assistance. 

Section VI: Duration of the CBA

This agreement will last from July 1, 2023 until June 30, 2026. Negotiations must begin at least 90 days prior to the expiration of the contract and this contract will be in effect until a new agreement is established. 

Per the School Board Resolution on Collective Bargaining, this past contract was limited to two issues per bargaining unit, which included compensation and duties for IAs and SNS, and a salary compression and stipend increase for CSAs. The range of topics in the next contract will be open to include other areas such as benefits, leave policy, parent and community engagement, working environment, and working hours. As such, it is our hope that the next cycle of negotiations begins much sooner than 90 days prior to the expiration of this contract. Please communicate your ideas and concerns regarding the next contract with your REA Building Rep, or contact the REA Board. 

Section VII: Funding for the CBA

  • The funding of the CBA is dependent on available funding at the state and local levels. If there are not sufficient funds available, the REA or RPS have the right to reopen collective bargaining negotiations.

Section VIII: Work Stoppages

Despite public sector strikes being legal in some states, they are banned in Virginia (see § 40.1-55 of the Code of Virginia). To understand why, we need a quick lesson in Virginia history (and no, this history is unfortunately not in the SOLs!). 

In Charlottesville in 1943, the all-Black and all-women workforce of “ward maids” at UVA Hospital went on strike after their petition for a wage increase to meet the rising cost of living was rejected. In response to the strike, UVA laid off all the workers and replaced them with an all-white volunteer workforce drawn from the Red Cross and King’s Daughters. The Black community in Charlottesville mobilized in response. UVA soon changed their tune, and offered raises for all staff who returned to work.

A year later, in 1944, the all-Black workforce of orderlies at UVA Hospital threatened to strike if their working day wasn’t immediately reduced from 12 to eight hours. UVA conceded to their demand, and they won an eight-hour working day.

In 1945, the all-Black workforce of UVA Hospital unionized as Local 550 of the State, County, and Municipal Workers of America (SCMWA), affiliated with the militant Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). Members of Local 550, like Randolph Lewis White, would go on to lead the Civil Rights Movement in Virginia. In recalling those years of struggle, White said, “Whether you’re white or Black, they’ll just cut you down, like mowing hay. But when people band together, you can do a whole lot.” UVA Hospital told members of Local 550 that state law prohibited them from recognizing the union; members of Local 550 said they didn’t care, and continued to advance their demand for union recognition backed-up by the power of the strike.

UVA Hospital caved to the mounting pressure of Local 550, supported by Charlottesville’s Black community and the CIO. The union was recognized in the summer of 1945. However, in 1946 the General Assembly adopted Senate Joint Resolution 12 largely in response to Local 550’s campaign. This resolution prohibited recognition of public sector unions and curtailed the rights of public sector workers. Local 550 remained undeterred, and continued to fight for justice and equality on the job through their grassroots workplace committees. 

1946 witnessed the largest strike wave in U.S. history. Here in the Commonwealth, members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) employed by the Virginia Electric and Power Company – now Dominion Energy – threatened to strike for a 17 cent pay increase. In response, Governor William Tuck – a virulent white supremacist and defender of racial segregation – conscripted them into the state militia and threatened them with a court martial if they didn’t keep working. In 1947, the so-called “Right to Work” laws were passed by the General Assembly, which severely curtailed the rights and power of working people throughout the state.

Section VIII of our contract says the union cannot “encourage” employees to strike or do any kind of work stoppage. Two or more workers that refuse a duty together can be fired and can’t be rehired for 12 months. RPS can’t do a lockout of workers (a “lockout” is when the boss doesn’t let workers go back to work until they agree to something). However, as comprehensive job descriptions have yet to be completed, the statement regarding an employee who “willingly refuses to perform the duties of their employment” in concert with two or more employees is far too vague. While undoubtedly a step forward, the Richmond City School Board Resolution on Collective Bargaining and our Collective Bargaining Agreement nonetheless uphold Virginia’s anti-union “right to work” laws.

It is important to emphasize that the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, the Constitution of Virginia, and the 2018 Richmond City School Board Resolution on Free Speech protect your right, as a public sector employee, to freedom of speech, freedom of press, and freedom of assembly. This includes your right to publicly advocate for a change in legislation, to take collective action on and off the job in order to win social change, and to study, disseminate, and learn from the history of the U.S. labor movement, including the histories of the heroic strikes against child labor, unsafe working conditions, for the eight-hour day, living wages, unemployment benefits, and government assistance in times of need, which advanced struggles against racial oppression and for the civil rights of all peoples.

The RPS Resolution on Collective Bargaining quotes Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. favorably: 

“The labor movement was the principal force that transformed misery and despair into hope and progress. Out of its bold struggles, economic and social reform gave birth to unemployment insurance, old-age pensions, government relief for the destitute and, above all, new wage levels that meant not mere survival but a tolerable life. The captains of industry did not lead this transformation; they resisted it until they were overcome. When in the thirties the wave of union organization crested over the nation, it carried to secure shores not only itself but the whole society.” 

However, it is important that we remember the 1968 strike of public sector workers in Memphis, Tennessee, led by AFSCME local 1733 – a strike which Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. courageously joined, and in the course of which he was tragically assassinated – was an illegal strike. History teaches us that the law is not always on the side of justice; in fact, it is frequently on the side of tyranny. 

Section IX. Severability 

  • If anything in this contract were proven to be illegal or unenforceable, it would only nullify that section or provision and not the whole contract.
  • For example, if the U.S. Supreme Court deemed that Section VIII of our CBA (which states that RPS may fire workers for “encouraging” a strike) was a violation of our First Amendment rights, then only Section VIII would be removed.

Conclusion

You hold in your hands a guide to the first Collective Bargaining Agreement won by public sector workers in the state of Virginia since 1977. It was through the patient workplace organizing and grassroots collective action of REA members that we got this far. Now, we must not only defend what has been won, but push the struggle forward to win the schools Richmond students deserve. We must use our power not only to win equitable compensation for all RPS workers, but to improve the quality of public education by winning a better working and learning environment for the whole RPS community. We have made it this far: now let’s go all the way!