IGH Board of Education Approves New Teacher Contract

Editor’s Note: This story will be updated with comments from Education Minnesota Inver Grove Heights.

The Inver Grove Heights school district has a new two-year contract with its teachers union.

On Monday night, the Board of Education approved an accord with Education Minnesota Inver Grove Heights Local 1718 that calls for a 1-percent wage hike during each of the two school years it covers—the current 2011-12 school year and 2012-13.

In addition, teachers will receive $15-per-month increase in health insurance benefits in the second year of the deal. No additional health care contributions are included this year.

“That’s because there was no premium increase in health insurance for this year,” said Bruce Rimstad, business manager for Inver Grove Heights Community Schools. “I think people were very cognizant when it came to using health insurance in the past year, and that shows in the premium.”

Monday’s board approval was the final step in making the contract official. Teachers already had ratified the deal.

The new contract was finalized more than a halfway through of the current school year. Teachers had worked under terms of the previous contract, ratified in 2010.

“It’s not unusual for us to be done with the contract six to nine months after the start of the school year,” said Rimstad. “It seems to be the way it works here. There are very few school districts that have their contracts finished before the start of the year.”

Rimstad said the teachers’ new contract offers similar wage and benefit increases to those included in the 2010 deal.

“Teachers received a little smaller raise, but a little more for insurance,” he said.

Be sure to follow Inver Grove Heights Patch on Twitter, "Like" us on Facebook, and sign up for our newsletter, which sends you updates about stories, breaking news, announcements, events and blogs on our site.