Phila district, teachers close to contract deal
Negotiators for the Philadelphia School District and its teachers union appear to be very close to reaching agreement on a new contract.

Negotiators for the Philadelphia School District and its teachers union appear to be very close to reaching agreement on a new contract.
The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers advised members in emails and a private notice this afternoon on its web site that they are planning for a meeting to vote on ratification of a new contract.
"We are making progress, but there is no agreement yet," PFT President Jerry Jordan said in the email to members sent shortly before 1 p.m.
The members will be receiving a post card ballot in the mail this week for a ratification vote at a date to be announced. Teachers should report to work tomorrow and will be under terms of the existing contract, Jordan advised.
The sides negotiated through the weekend for the second consecutive weekend, after nearly three weeks of daily negotiations, Jordan said. The contract has been extended five times since Aug. 31, 2008, when the previous four-year pact expired.
Extending the school day, merit pay, teacher assignments and pay are among the issues in contention.
The PFT represents 17,000 teachers, counselors, librarians, school nurses, secretaries, classroom and nonteaching assistants, and other staff.
Act 46, the state takeover law, makes Philadelphia's teachers the only ones in the state forbidden to strike. The district was taken over by the state in December 2001.
The law also gives broad powers to the School Reform Commission, which may impose terms and conditions on the union - although it has never done so.
Contact staff writer Susan Snyder at 215-854-4693 or ssnyder@phillynews.com























