A joint announcement from the District 58 Board and DG Educational Support Personnel
The Downers Grove Grade School District 58 Board of Education approved a new four-year collective bargaining agreement with the Downers Grove Educational Support Personnel (DGESP) association during the Board’s regular meeting on Monday, July 8, following five months of negotiation sessions.
“The DGESP team members and administrators worked collaboratively to create a new contract that offers competitive raises and benefits, and addresses several needs that were raised by the DGESP leadership during negotiations. We are proud of what we were able to accomplish together, and appreciate the strong support by the Board of Education for dedicating funding to assist us in reaching our goal,” said Assistant Superintendent for Personnel Dr. Jayne Yudzentis.
The DGESP ratified the contract on Thursday, June 6 with a unanimous vote. The DGESP includes District 58’s full-time and part-time secretaries and instructional assistants.
“We felt extremely fortunate to work with Jayne, Justin and Todd. The team worked together to create a document that was fair to all; member and District alike. We believe the final product accomplished that goal,” said DGESP President and Herrick Instructional Assistant Emily Honn. “The new contract acknowledges the hard work and dedication our members provide every day to the students and staff of District 58. We are very proud of the work that was done.”
The new DGESP contract offers:
- More competitive starting salaries, which increase each year of the contract ($13.50, $14.00, $14.50 and $15.00 per hour).
- Annual salary increases of 6 percent, 3 percent, 3 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively, to retain the current high-quality employees.
- An increased contribution by the Board of Education toward instructional assistant health insurance premiums, as well as a secretarial health insurance cost shift with an increased contribution by secretaries that maintains their high level of benefits.
- DGESP participation on the newly-established District Health and Wellness Committee. This committee reviews and monitors the current status of the District’s health insurance coverage and examines possible cost containment options.
- Employee retirement benefit retention, while also protecting the District from additional costs associated with Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) penalties.
- A $50,000 life insurance benefit to all DGESP staff at no cost to the employee.
- Increased opportunities for instructional assistants to participate in professional learning and collaboration activities.
- Revisions to contract language in an effort to increase understanding of the various contract provisions.