JUNCTION CITY, Kan. — The Junction City Education Association (JCEA) and USD 475 will enter mediation later this month following the District’s declaration of impasse in negotiations over the 2026–2027 negotiated agreement. A mediator has been assigned, and mediation sessions are scheduled for September 28 and September 30 at 4:15 p.m.
JCEA did not agree to or sign a joint declaration of impasse. The District chose to file the declaration independently after the parties were unable to reach an agreement on compensation. The JCEA negotiations team returned to the bargaining table on August 31 after members of the bargaining unit, which includes certified teachers, voted not to ratify the proposed 2026–2027 tentative negotiated agreement.
Following the failed ratification vote, JCEA communicated members’ primary concerns to the District, including no vertical or horizontal movement on the salary schedule, the salary schedule freeze, increased employee health insurance costs, and the loss of longevity payments for eligible employees. When the parties returned to the table, the District informed JCEA that its position on compensation had not changed.
JCEA proposed a compensation package providing vertical and horizontal salary schedule movement for eligible employees and a 1.5% payment for employees who are off schedule, have received longevity, or otherwise cannot move on the salary schedule. The Board declined JCEA’s compensation proposal and indicated its intention to declare impasse.
Mediation is the next step in the negotiations process and brings in a neutral third party to work with JCEA and the District in an effort to reach an agreement on the issues that remain unresolved. If the parties remain at impasse following mediation, the process may proceed to fact-finding.