MOORPARK : Agreement Near on Teachers’ Contract

Moorpark’s teachers and school district officials announced Thursday that they are close to reaching an agreement on a contract.

The two sides meet last week and arrived at a tentative agreement on a number of points, according to a statement released jointly by Supt. Tom Duffy and union President Richard Gillis.

The two sides have also agreed not to speak about the negotiations, except with pre-approved joint statements, according to school board member Tom Baldwin.

“All I can say is that everything is going well and we’re very close to reaching an agreement,” Baldwin said.

The union has complained that teachers in the Moorpark Unified School District have not had a raise in four years and have been without a contract for two years.

School board members have said a looming budget deficit has precluded them from offering a raise.

Several measures have been discussed to find money for increased salaries, including the use of lottery revenue or cutting back on the district’s non-teaching staff.

The two sides are scheduled to sit down in two weeks to iron out their remaining differences, Baldwin said.