UPDATE:TEACHERS' CONTRACT; New kind of contract looks like a close call

Terry Collins. Star Tribune. Minneapolis, Minn.: Jan 15, 2008. pg. B.3

(Copyright 2008 Star Tribune)

THE LATEST: Voting ended Monday by Minneapolis teachers on a pioneering contract that could give principals more influence in choosing their staffs. The vote was expected to be close. About half of the nearly 3,000-member Minneapolis Teachers Federation had cast ballots as of Monday evening.

AT STAKE: The key point of contention is whether principals would be able to "interview and select" teachers, in place of a 37-year-old seniority process that gives more senior teachers priority in school assignments.

REACTION: It has been mixed. Some parents and district officials believe the current system hurts schools with high turnover. Some teachers believe "interview and select" would promote favoritism instead of earned privileges.

"I think it's going to be a toss-up," Robert Panning-Miller, the teachers union president, said Monday evening about the vote.

DETAILS: Also in the deal, teachers would get a 2 percent pay raise this year, retroactive to July 1, followed by a 1 percent raise next year. A one-time $750 bonus would be awarded next year.

The state-imposed deadline to reach a deal is today.

Results were not available as this edition of the Star Tribune went to press. For updated results, go to www.startribune.com.