When contract negotiations between the Andover School Committee and negotiators for the Andover Education Association in this month’s teachers’ strike, Andover Public Schools its latest offer would cost the town $9.6 million in total salaries over the life of the four-year contract, while the union’s offer would cost the Town $15.1 million.
In the end, the two sides split the difference to end the five-day strike, with the district’s finance department estimating APS will pay $12.5 million under the new pact.
“It’s important to note this depends on a significant number of factors — it’s not a neat, easy number that fits into a chart,” APS Spokesperson Nicole Kieser said in an email. “This estimate is contingent on the number of staff employed at any given time and an educators’…years of experience, education achieved, and years of service with the district.”
The school committee has warned the $12.5 million will force cuts and layoffs — something AEA said will be its “next fight.”