District, union for support staff agree to five-year contract

The City School District of Albany and the union representing about 610 staff members have agreed to a new five-year contract that provides employees with annual salary increases.

Albany Public School United Employees approved the contract earlier this month, with an overwhelming majority of the 313 members who voted saying "yes."

“We are pleased to have reached agreement with APSUE through a collaborative negotiation process that emphasized and valued the important role our support staff play throughout our school district,” said Superintendent Kaweeda G. Adams. “We are grateful to APSUE’s leadership and all of its members for their partnership in helping to move our school district forward.”

“APSUE members throughout the district work under many different job titles, but share one common goal … educating the youth of the City of Albany,” said APSUE President Sonya Flowers.  “The contract agreed to by our members and the district was fair, equitable and helped show that what we do is valued.

“APSUE continues to make positive strides with the district to improve morale for all members.  We look forward to our continued growth as a team.”

The contract covers the years 2015-16 through 2019-20. APSUE members had been working without a contract after members rejected a proposal in 2016.

In addition to annual salary increases, the new contract also provides employees more flexibility in the use of bereavement leave, as well as 5 percent increases in longevity payments in the final two years of the contract.

The agreement also increases employee contributions to health insurance from 15 percent currently to 16 percent in 2018-19 and 17 percent in 2019-20.

“In our classrooms, hallways, offices, lunch rooms and everywhere APSUE members work, they often are the first point of contact our students have with an adult at school, building critical relationships that are vital to our efforts to serve our 9.500 students and their families,” Adams said.

The mission of the City School District of Albany is to work in partnership with our diverse community to engage every learner in a robust educational program designed to provide the knowledge and skills necessary for success. The district serves about 9,500 students in 18 elementary, middle and high schools. In addition to neighborhood schools, the district includes several magnet schools and programs, as well as other innovative academic opportunities for students, including four themed academies at Albany High School.