DETROIT – At the eleventh hour, Detroit schools and its teachers union have reached an agreement on a new contract.
The Detroit Federation of Teachers (DFT) said Sunday they have entered into a tentative agreement for a successor collective bargaining agreement for the 2023-24 school year with the Detroit Public Schools Community District.
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The union and district had been negotiating for weeks, and both sides signaled they were close to a deal late last week.
“All educators are expected to return to work Monday, August 21st, while students’ first day of school is Monday, August 28th. We look forward to continuing our work and commitment to providing our students and families the best possible educational services and opportunities,” DFT said in a statement.
The details of the agreement have not yet been released, pending ratification voting, which is expected to open Monday and close Thursday at noon.
The DFT and its members were calling for salary increases that the union believes will help keep up with inflation, cost of living, and quality of life. Right now, starting salary for new teachers in DPSCD is $51,000.
Detroit Public School Community District Superintendent, Nikolai Vitti, released a statement on Friday afternoon.
“The District has rightfully prioritized teacher salary increases over each of the last six years, which has positioned the district to recruit and retain hundreds of teachers and achieve near fully staffed status,” said Vitti. “This year, the school board and I made hard decisions, including staff reductions, to free reoccurring revenue to allow for another salary increase next year at levels exceeding previous record high DPSCD teacher salary increases. I am confident that the District and DFT will reach an agreement soon.”