SOUTH POINT — The South Point Ohio Association of Public School Employees Local 480 has rejected an offer from the school district to settle a months-long dispute over collective bargaining.

According to a prepared statement from Superintendent Ken Cook, most issues were agreed upon prior to mediation but several issues remain unresolved.

The most divisive appears to be the recognition and the removal from the contract of a provision that allows the union to dictate to the board classification and reclassification of positions.

Cook said in his statement this severely obstructs the board’s ability to reclassify positions and effectively manage the school district. Cook said South Point is the only school district in Lawrence County with this article in its collective bargaining agreement.

Cook said the board’s negotiating team also proposed deleting the coordinator of cooks position. The school administration, he said, no longer sees the need for this as a full-time position (30 hours weekly) when the workload is closer to 10-13 hours per week.

At the onset of the Oct. 19 mediation session, the union and board had agreed on changes regarding insurance.

These changes require employees who currently pay nothing toward their insurance to pay $64 a month for single coverage and $79 a month for family coverage. However, the changes also provide relief to employees hired after July 1, 2002 who are currently required to pay 25 percent of the monthly insurance premium.

These employees, who have paid up to $425 per month for family coverage and $172 for single coverage, would have their monthly share reduced to 15 percent (currently $237 per month for family coverage and $96 per month for single coverage) and would save employees up to $1,896 annually.

The board’s final offer for insurance included enhancements to the agreed upon insurance language that would have allowed employees to receive dental and vision coverage for their families at a significantly reduced cost to the employee. The board proposed a package that tied changes in this article to a one-time $1,000 bonus.

Another issue apparently seen as contentious is sick leave. The district officials’ plan would require the superintendent’s approval for the transfer of sick leave from employees of the board to other members who have exhausted their sick leave due to catastrophic illness.

Currently the union has the ability to determine what is considered a catastrophic illness and to approve the donation of sick leave. According to Cook’s statement, the union has taken the position that an employee’s loss of insurance due to the exhaustion of sick leave constitutes a catastrophic illness and merits the transfer of sick leave to maintain that coverage at the board’s cost.

Cook said he released his statement to clear up confusion about what the district was offering. The new three – year contract was retroactive to July 1, 2011, and would end June 30, 2014.

OAPSE 480 president Sandi Baise, who is a bus driver, was contacted this morning for her comments. Because she was working, she said she would return the call and make comments later Thursday. The union’s response will be in Friday’s edition.