Caldwell negotiators add workplace-safety clause, approve tentative 2026–27 master agreement

Negotiators for the CALDWELL DISTRICT and the district’s certificated employee representatives tentatively approved a 2026–27 master agreement on a series of articles and addenda, including a newly inserted workplace-safety provision and two memorandums of understanding to be tested in the coming school year.

The workplace-safety language, read aloud during the session, commits the district to “make reasonable efforts to provide working conditions that protect employees from violence, threats, intimidation, harassment and physical injury while performing their duties,” and requires the district to establish reporting and response procedures, according to the language presented by negotiators. "The district shall make reasonable efforts to provide working conditions that protect employees from violence, threats, intimidation, harassment, and physical injury while performing their duties," the negotiator who read the draft told the group.

Negotiators described the clause as both a statement of district responsibility and a commitment to create procedures to escalate and document incidents. "We’re also looking at establishing some procedures for some review process when there is a student who’s demonstrating aggressive behaviors…so folks feel like they have an avenue," said Julie (speaker identified in the record as Julie), who urged the parties to adopt procedures that let employees raise unresolved concerns to the district level.

The session included line-by-line reviews and approvals of Articles 1 through 8 and related addenda, with small wording and formatting edits. Participants approved the language for several sections by recorded motions and thumbs-up confirmations during the meeting; motions were seconded and carried without a roll-call vote in the remote session. For example, the motion to accept the workplace-safety language was moved and seconded during the meeting and participants indicated approval by thumbs-up.

In addition to the workplace-safety clause, negotiators agreed to two memorandums of understanding. MOU 1, titled “shared commitments,” is nonbinding sentiment language the parties agreed may remain as a preface or addendum; negotiators discussed whether to call it an MOU or a prologue but voted to keep it as a shared-commitments memorandum. MOU 2 will pilot a fractional-leave program during the 2026–27 school year: "Fractional leave will be implemented throughout the 2026–27 school year. Data will be gathered to analyze its effectiveness and ease of implementation," Julie said during the discussion.

The fractional-leave MOU is expressly framed as a trial: schools will collect data on usage and impact so the parties can determine whether to keep, revise, or discontinue the practice. Negotiators noted the MOU includes an expectation to review effectiveness periodically and to revise the approach by mutual agreement if the data suggest changes are needed.

The negotiators also settled a glossary term for extra-duty coverage pay. After discussion about naming and form design, the parties adopted the phrase “Compensated Classroom Coverage” for the glossary entry and agreed to develop a compensation form (referred to informally in the session as the "triple-C" form).

The group agreed the negotiated text will be reformatted and published in two versions: a redlined/colored copy that tracks edits and a final clean copy. The association will ratify the tentative agreement on its side; once association ratification is complete the district board will be asked to certify or ratify the agreement in a public meeting. Negotiators said the documents and a crosswalk of changes will be stored in the shared drive for records and future reference.

The meeting closed with a formal motion to accept the tentative 2026–27 master agreement; participants indicated approval and discussed logistics for signatures and distribution. The tentative agreement is subject to the association’s ratification and the district board’s formal certification before it becomes final.

What happens next: the association will conduct its ratification process and, if approved, the district board will be scheduled to certify the agreement; negotiators said they will provide both redlined and final PDFs for recordkeeping and public review.