On Jan. 28, the members of the Hinsdale High School Teachers Association (HHSTA) ratified the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement with the District 86 Board of Education. This agreement, which the board unanimously approved on the same day, features the following key outcomes and provisions.

  • The contract is for two years and will run through the end of the 2021-22 school year. Any changes made for the 2020-21 school year will be retroactive to the start of the year. 

  • The average annual increase of the entire contract (e.g., salary, fringe benefits, etc.) is 1.89%.

  • The base salary will increase each year of the contract in accordance with the consumer price index (CPI). The increase for the first year (2020-21) will be 25% of CPI or 0.48%. The increase for the second year (2021-22) will be 75% or 1.73%. 

  • There will be no change in the benefits for medical or dental insurance. 

  • The Teachers’ Retirement Insurance Program (TRIP) reimbursement has been eliminated. In lieu of this benefit, the retirement incentive (i.e., the increase in an employee’s TRS creditable earnings over the previous year) has been changed from 3% to 6%. An employee may receive this stipend no more than four years under the district’s retirement program. In addition, this benefit will replace any increase in base salary an employee might have received. 

  • During the 2020-21 school year, special education teachers with case management responsibilities will receive an annual stipend in the amount of the per diem for their base salary for one working day. During the 2021-2022 school year, the number of days for the annual stipend will increase from one to three. 

  • Employees who perform work during the summer that is not related to summer school (e.g., driver education instruction, curriculum projects, etc.) will be paid $42.93 per hour for the summer following the 2020-21 school year and $43.67 per hour for the summer following the 2021-22 school year. 

  • Employees who supervise extra-curricular activities will not receive an increase in their stipend during the 2020-21 school year. However, these stipends will increase by 75% of CPI or 1.73% during the 2021-22 school year. 

  • There will continue to be six Flexible Learning Days per school year. During these days, students will be on campus for in-person instruction from 8 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. They will travel home and eat lunch between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. They will then engage in asynchronous learning from home in the afternoon. After lunch, teachers will engage in work related to the advancement of the strategic plan from 12:30 p.m. until 3:15 p.m. 

  • Remote Learning Days may be used in lieu of emergency days when in-person instruction is disrupted due to issues such as inclement weather. 

  • There will no longer be an entire day devoted to the completion of parent-teacher conferences. Instead, students and teachers will engage in instruction for part of the school day, and conferences will take place during the other portion of the school day and in the evening. The district’s Calendar Committee will determine the plan and schedule for conferences. 

  • There is updated and/or revised language regarding a variety of topics that include, but are not limited to, National Board Certification, sick bank and new hires. 

Joint Statement Regarding New HHSTA Contract
The board of education, district administration and Hinsdale High School Teachers Association (HHSTA) are pleased to announce that we have reached an agreement on a new teacher contract. Our work on this critical endeavor during the past two years has strengthened our partnership and mutual respect for each other.

One key aspect of the contract that we want to address is the decision to enter into a two-year agreement that will run through the 2021-22 school year. In discussing the different options that were available, we concluded that a short-term contract would be more prudent and practical at this time given the budgetary issues here in Illinois and the financial uncertainty created by COVID-19. Not only will this agreement enable us to recognize the vital and valuable contributions of our teachers, it will also help us navigate the current economic challenges at the state and national levels, and fulfill our responsibility as fiscal stewards for the community.

We want to thank the members of the negotiating teams for the time, effort and energy they invested in this process. We want to thank the community for its steadfast belief in the value of education and tireless support of our schools, both of which provided a strong foundation upon which this agreement was constructed. Most importantly, we want to thank our students for serving as the motivation and inspiration for everything we do.
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