AEA Bargaining Team Updates
December 1 President Update
Dear Members,
The AEA Organizing Committee requests everyone - regardless of your zone - participate in supporting member testimony at the ASD School Board meeting on Tuesday, December 2, at 6:00.
I'm excited to see everyone there!
School Board Testimony
ASD has several talking points on its website that misrepresent the facts about AEA health benefits and salary raises.
In ADN’s article posted over the Thanksgiving weekend, ADN quoted some of these misrepresentations without examining them or asking AEA for comment.
If you're seeking testimony, please review some of the truths outlined below.
AEA Health Benefits
ADN quoted the ASD website:
The district’s post to its website regarding health care costs asserts that rising premiums are partially due to the union’s choice to leave the district’s health plan and enroll in the Public Education Health Trust nearly three decades ago. The district says it sought a market analysis comparing health plans this summer, but said that limited information from PEHT prevented precise comparisons.
AEA’s Response
Rising premiums are impacting everyone—every employer, every job, and every part of our state and country. What the Daily News left out:
AEA left ASD because ASD was not transparent about their plans in the 1990s, and AEA won a multi-million dollar arbitration and the right to manage their own plan - thus PEHT was born. ASD’s lack of transparency still exists.
ASD simply appropriated money from the general fund, diverting these funds from certificated employees' pay increases. Again, ASD is paying hundreds of dollars, $267 projected, over what was negotiated per employee each month in their health plan.
The market analysis was a sham. AEA actively advocated for the market analysis and received more information from PEHT than ever before, enabling it to be conducted accurately.
Blue Cross made a proposal that was more costly than the current PEHT costs.
Aetna could not bid because it had a non-competing clause.
The third party did not make an offer because they couldn’t be competitive at all and could not beat the offer we already received.
The ADN article ended with:
“Without transparency from PEHT, the teachers’ union cannot explain why premiums spiked with a 15% cost increase this fall, far above ASD’s own 5% increase and higher than the statewide average of 10%,” the district’s post said.
“The result is that Anchorage educators are paying more, with little clarity as to why.”
AEA’s Response
PEHT has been highly transparent providing more information to ASD than ever before.
ASD’s increased subsidy to its own health plan participants is intentionally omitted from its website. ASD raised the subsidy in 25-26 for their health plan participants to a projected $2167, $267 per person per month, more than the $1900 they negotiated with the bargaining units.
ASD chose not to increase the subsidy for their certificated educators, forcing those educators to cover the entire 15% increase. In 25-26, ASD only contributes $1,900 per AEA-certificated employee.
Salary
Christian Haich, AEA Bargaining Team Spokesperson, reviewed some of the content ASD has published on its website and ADN quoted in the article. His analysis reveals some important distinctions:
ASD seems to have based its estimate of a 34% salary increase since 2011 on the average salary of all educators. This estimate is highly misleading because it mixes salary increases with other factors. The main problem is that more experienced educators now make up a larger share of the workforce as positions are cut, and new teachers leave and are not replaced.
A better comparison is the increase in the salary scale, highlighting key points in the scale.
1) B0 Step 0 is a brand new educator.
Salary in 11-12 school year = $45,611
Salary in 24-25 school year = $56,823
This is a 24.6% increase over 13 years, just a 1.7% increase per year.
2) B36 Step 5 is an educator who is eligible to leave the state with their full retirement match from the state.
Salary in 11-12 school year = $56,348
Salary in 24-25 school year = $69,848
This is a 24.0% increase over 13 years, just a 1.7% increase per year.
3) B90 w/Masters and B72 w/Masters Supplement Step 20 is an experienced ASD educator at the top of the salary scale.
Salary in 11-12 school year = $83,952
Salary in 24-25 school year = $101,406
This is a 20.8% increase over 13 years, just a 1.5% increase per year.
These three examples represent the bottom, middle, and top of the pay scale.
For us to be as effective as we need to be, it requires all of us. All 2839 members have a role in this effort. This isn’t just one person’s fight or one group’s fight; it’s our fight, and the outcome impacts every educator in the district.
In Solidarity,
Corey
November 18 Arbitration Update
Dear Members,
I want to begin by expressing my gratitude for the tireless work you do every day to support students and families.
Please encourage your colleagues to read this message. Our strength grows when we are all informed and engaged.
We are the union. Every one of us plays a role. And right now, many of your colleagues are stepping up, getting involved, and working hard to push for a fair and respectful contract. I have been truly inspired by the educators who have volunteered their time, shared personal stories, attended meetings, and spoken out. Their dedication reflects the heart of unionism: collective strength, shared responsibility, and solidarity.
Read more for an update about our ongoing contract negotiations.
Arbitration Hearing Set for January
Last Thursday, AEA and ASD jointly selected an arbitrator. Today, we received confirmation that the arbitration hearing is scheduled for January 27-29, 2026.
This officially begins the ninety-day countdown. Counting ninety days from Thursday, November 13, 2025, leads us to February 11, 2026. That means the earliest date we can legally take any job action (including a strike) is February 12, 2026.
After 90 days from the date an arbitrator is chosen, AEA members may conduct a job action, and ASD may impose its last best offer. AS 23.40.200 and 8 AAC 97.280
You can review the latest AEA and ASD proposals, along with all bargaining information, HERE.
📢 AEA prepares for potential strike vote
As the AEA Bargaining Team continues its arbitration preparation, the AEA Organizing Committee will be working closely with building reps in every zone to deepen solidarity and secure a clear commitment from every AEA educator to stand together for a competitive contract.
Either before winter break or shortly after, AEA members will participate in a strike vote. A strike vote does not mean a strike must occur. Instead, it is a critical pressure point, a collective signal that we are united and serious about securing a contract that respects our work and reflects what every educator deserves.
A strike vote authorizes the AEA Board to initiate a strike once we are within the legal window to do so. It will depend on ASD’s actions whether we, as a collective, will need to take that next step.
For us to be as effective as we need to be, it requires all of us. All 3,000 members have a role in this effort. This isn’t just one person’s fight or one group’s fight; it’s our fight, and the outcome impacts every educator in the district.
In Solidarity,
Corey Aist