HOPE – It was back in 2021 when the Flat Rock-Hawcreek School Corp. held a “pre-bargaining” public hearing for the first time.
The pre-bargaining hearing is mandated by the state before formal negotiations can begin between administrators and the teacher’s association on a new two-year contract, Superintendent Shawn Price said.
But when the first such hearing was held a few years ago, Price said the only people in attendance were himself and a representative of the Flat Rock-Hawcreek Teacher’s Association. The superintendent said he found out the same thing happens in most Indiana school districts.
Price isn’t expecting anything to be different when the pre-bargaining hearing gets underway at 4 p.m. Monday in the board room adjacent to the corporation’s central office.
But the meeting will give the superintendent a chance to talk informally with the union representative on compensation a few days before formal negotiations begin Wednesday, Price said.
Once a tentative agreement is reached, the FRHC school board will conduct their own public hearing with details released in advance. That hearing will be held separately before the board is asked to ratify the contract.
Two years ago, the co-presidents of the Flat Rock-Hawcreek Teacher’s Association said educators in the Hope area received the largest raise they’ve ever received in recent memory. The contract called for a collective increase of 8.3% in its first year and another estimated 2% in the second year for a total of 10.3%.
Price says he’s already had informal conversations with members of the teachers’ union. He says FRHC has every intention to keep their salaries and benefits competitive with other school corporations for the next two years.
