PFT contract asks revealed: paid parental leave, lower class sizes, ending 3-5-7-9, money for oversize classes, and more

The Philadelphia School District’s largest union has demanded that it formally end a controversial sick-day policy that penalizes teachers and other workers from taking their contractually earned time, and that it pay teachers for oversize classes, award parental leave to members, and more.

The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers shared details of its recent contract proposal with its nearly 14,000 members this week. Financial proposals are forthcoming as the union prepares to negotiate a new contract. The current pact expires in August.

Arthur Steinberg, PFT president, said the union submitted a lengthy proposal to district leaders on Tuesday.

“PFT is negotiating a contract that makes sure our public schools are building a better future for Philadelphia,” Steinberg said in a message to members obtained by The Inquirer. “A growing city can only thrive with strong neighborhood public schools that are well-staffed and resourced.”

The proposals come amid a time of significant upheaval for education, with the state and city budgets months away from being settled and President Donald Trump moving toward gutting or eliminating the U.S. Department of Education.

And they come as the district prepares to introduce, debate, and eventually adopt a budget proposal for the 2025-26 school year. The school system, with about 114,000 students in 216 schools and a $4.5 billion budget, is unique in Pennsylvania — it cannot raise its own revenue, but depends on the state and city for the bulk of its funding. The federal government kicks in about 10% of the district’s funds.

Even without any salary increases that are likely to come from a new PFT deal, district officials were projecting an eventual budget deficit in their five-year plan absent increases in aid from the city, state, and other funders. It is not clear exactly where the money would come from to pay for a new teachers’ contract.

Philadelphia’s educator salaries lag other local school systems’, despite tougher working conditions. Steinberg said in the member message that Philadelphia’s top-paid teachers earn $107,495, while Abington’s earn $122,264, Cheltenham’s are paid $125,749, and Lower Merion’s $134,565.

The other districts have had more salary growth in recent decades — Philadelphia’s teacher salaries have increased by $2.6 million over 35 years, Cheltenham’s by $3.6 million, Abington’s by $3.7 million, and Lower Merion’s by $4.1 million.

The Philadelphia School District typically does not comment on ongoing negotiations. Officials were not immediately available to comment.

Here is a rundown of what’s included in the PFT’s shoot-the-moon proposal, sure to be the subject of significant negotiations in the coming months as the two sides meet in the middle:

Philadelphia teachers now have 10 sick days per school year, but they are penalized progressively simply for taking them.

The policy, known as “3-5-7-9,” works this way: After a teacher’s third “occurrence,” whether a single sick day or the third in a consecutive stretch of days, principals are instructed to have an informal conversation with the instructor and write a memo documenting the episode. After the fifth occurrence, the teacher gets a warning memo in the permanent file; after the seventh, the teacher gets an “unsatisfactory incident” memo in the file and a formal conference. A teacher who reaches nine occurrences gets a second unsatisfactory incident report, a recommended suspension, and conferences with the principal and assistant superintendent.

Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. has signaled he understands the antiquated policy hurts the district’s attempts to retain current teachers and recruit new ones.

PFT members currently get no paid parental leave. Union leaders want to change that, adding 12 weeks of leave.

The proposal would also lower class sizes significantly. Class sizes are now capped at 30 students for kindergarten through third grade and 33 for all other grades. PFT wants no more than 18 students in K-3, 22 in 4-8, and 25 in higher grades.

Research shows that higher class sizes typically correlate to lower student achievement, but reducing class sizes is expensive.

Even with contractual limits, the district sometimes now over-enrolls classes, with no penalty for doing so. The PFT wants to establish a $20 per student per day fee for affected teachers.

The union wants teachers to have one preparatory day per quarter, and increased prep time during the week — 360 minutes per week for all teachers. Some teachers now are guaranteed 225 minutes per week, depending on grade level.

Special education teachers would get a 45-minute period per week to work on Individualized Education Plans, documents required by federal law for all students who receive special education services.

The PFT wants to force the district to pay retirees and those who leave the district their accumulated termination pay for sick and vacation time within 75 days and, if it fails to do so, require the district to pay 2% interest.

The school system has historically lagged in getting term pay to employees who leave the district; at one point, some employees waited years for the money they were owed. That has improved some, but those who depart the district usually do not receive checks for months after they leave.

If enacted, the contract would set a limit of a 750-student caseload for school nurses, with a maximum of 225 students who need daily nursing services and 125 students with significant medical needs. The district would also stop requiring certified school nurses to cover other schools when there are vacancies or absences, and instead establish a pool of floating nurses.

It would also mandate maximum caseloads of 400 students for elementary school counselors, 150 students for middle school counselors, and 200 students for high school counselors.

Other proposals include: