REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio – The Reynoldsburg Education Association is embroiled in contract negotiations with the Reynoldsburg school board over the board’s desire to implement a merit-pay system for teachers.

The situation went from bad to worse last week as the REA members voted in favor of allowing union leaders to call a strike with 10 days notice.

Though there are only about 350 union members, much of Ohio is closely watching to see what happens. That outcome could have a ripple effect across the state, according to school board member Joe Begeny.

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The Columbus Dispatch quotes Begeny as saying, “No one has done a merit-pay system like what is being proposed (in Reynoldsburg).” But he says Reynoldsburg has always been considered a trend-setting district.

This is not the way new Reynoldsburg Superintendent Tina Thomas-Manning wanted to start her term. The board hired her last January to replace former Superintendent Steve Dackin, who retired at the end of July.

Like her predecessor, Thomas-Manning is determined to implement a performance-based compensation plan to replace the automatic, annual “step” raises that were based on time served and college credits earned.

She wants to provide bonuses for work done beyond classroom duties. She also wants to change teachers’ health coverage. The objective is to attract and retain the best-qualified teachers to the district.

Union leaders are not happy about the proposal. As usual, they have no interest in attracting the best possible teachers to the district. Their goal is to preserve the traditional pay system that’s based on the flawed assumption that all teachers are equally effective and deserve the same compensation.

At a school board meeting last month, 500 people, mostly teachers, showed up to protest outside. Inside they vocalized their concerns for 90 minutes, saying the new proposal would negatively impact teacher morale and student learning.

It’s not like the unions were taken by surprise. There’s been an ongoing, three-year study of merit pay and bonuses by the board, and union members have been involved in the discussions.

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Teachers’ union members from Columbus, Dayton, Bexley, Gahanna-Jefferson, Groveport Madison, Licking Heights, South-Western, Westerville and Whitehall were all present at last month’s board meeting to show their support for the Reynoldsburg Education Association. It could be an indication of just how worried the unions are about this type of reform.

Dispatch reporter Charlie Boss, a 10-year education writer, she’s never seen teachers unions from various communities unite like they have over the Reynoldsburg issue.

Education analyst Lindsey Burke of the Heritage Foundation says unions have always pushed back against merit pay proposals.

“…the unions have for decades protected this step-in-pay increase that…does not reflect the performance of the teacher,” Burke noted. “It simply says, …We’re going to compensate you on time spent in the classroom, not whether or not performance is improving and not whether or not a teacher is ensuring that her students are performing well.”

Since last August, 50 Reynoldsburg teachers have resigned, compared to 28 the year before. But the union admits some were leaving because their spouses were professionally relocated. Others resigned because they found jobs closer to home. Reynoldsburg schools spokesperson Tricia Moore says others might have simply have seen the writing on the wall.

Opponents claim that merit pay can lead to manipulation of data to improve testing outcomes. They also say there’s no proof that merit pay can boost student performance.

Burke cites Erik A. Hanushek of the Stanford School of Education, who says “replacing the lowest performing five to seven percent of teachers with teachers of average performance would allow American students to catch up to the education level of students in higher performing countries.”

Burke says a Stanford study shows merit pay has resulted in better performance by teachers and encouraged lesser teachers to improve.

Naysayers point to a study done in New York City schools, which shows merit pay did not increase performance and, in some cases, led to lower student performance.

To that, Burke says, “When you look at systems that moved toward growth models where they actually looked at how a teacher’s students, how a cohort of students, have performed over time…not just a static snapshot of how students are performing, but actually looked at growth…that becomes a much better reflection of not only student growth but of how teachers are impacting their students’ performances…”

The preliminary proposal in Reynoldsburg calls for “accomplished” teachers to get a four percent raise, “skilled” teachers two percent and “developing” teachers one percent. Those rated “ineffective” would not get a raise.

Teachers would also be eligible for other types of bonuses, including one for $30,000.

Union members say the proposed system does not help manage costs. But the Dispatch quotes Thomas-Manning as saying this is not about conserving costs, but about attracting, rewarding and retaining talented teachers.

Begeny, the school board member, says union members are “not necessarily opposed to a merit pay situation but they are opposed to the system they’re putting in place based on one singular test score.”

Moore says that is not correct. Teacher performance is based on the average growth rate of all of a teacher’s students over three years. Another equal part, she says, is an evaluation conducted by a trained evaluator, usually the principal.

Health insurance is a particularly sore subject in the negotiations. The board is proposing eliminating the health coverage they provide and, instead, giving the teachers cash to purchase their own insurance. Moore says doing so would give teachers a great deal of flexibility and choice in securing health coverage. Teachers would rather stay with their current coverage provided by the schools.

Boss says the public has been surprised by the amount of information leading out during negotiations, which began last May. That’s because the board posted details of the bargaining proposal on its website. Because of that, the REA filed an unfair labor practice charge against the board last month.

A federal mediator has been called in to help with the negotiations.

The current union contract expired at the end of July, but will remain in effect until a new contract is negotiated and approved. Moore says she can’t predict when that will be.

There were reports last Wednesday of a tentative agreement between the two sides. But union members voted on Friday to give union leaders the go-ahead to file an intent to strike. If they do, the strike would commence 10 days after the filing.

Moore says if it comes to that the district will be prepared to keep the schools open and operating, maintaining quality teaching and learning.

Meanwhile, all of Ohio is watching.