The Addison Elementary District 4 and its teachers union continues mediation, but remain at a standstill in their contract negotiations. Those negotiating on behalf of each party have an upcoming meeting scheduled with the federal mediator, which will be the fifth time the groups have come together in a session during the contract dispute. Negotiations began in March.

The first offer from the district was presented earlier in October to the teachers. The offer included details about teachers’ salaries and benefits, but was not enough to satisfy the teachers’ union. The bargaining team for the district is hoping it receives a counterproposal from the union or a commitment to at least continue mediation at the upcoming session.

During mediation, each side will be in a different room. The mediator will shuttle back and forth between the sides, discussion offers and willingness to negotiate. The mediation session will take place in the building that is home to the district’s offices, as well as Indian Trail Junior High in Addison.

At the moment, teachers are working under their most recent contract terms. It was a three-year deal that expired this past June. In that agreement, a first year teacher with a bachelor’s degree earns $41,605. Addison does not use the traditional schedule for salaries known as step increases based on length of service.

The negotiations that began in the spring continued through the summer months once the contract had expired, but little progress was made. The union and the district agreed at the end of summer to request federal assistance in assigning a mediator to help with the upcoming negotiations.

The Addison teachers’ union represents more than 300 teachers throughout the district. There are 4300 students in classes spread throughout the districts early learning center, elementary schools, and one junior high school.