SAN CLEMENTE : Protesting Teachers Picket Health Fair

About 75 teachers protesting health benefit cutbacks in their proposed contract picketed an employees’ health fair at San Clemente High School on Thursday.

The peaceful group crowded the sidewalk at two entrances to the high school parking lot, taking shifts from 2:30 p.m. until dark.

Capistrano Unified Educators Assn., a union representing 1,000 teachers in the school district, has been locked in a contract dispute with the district since June, when their last contract expired.

The teachers say that the benefit cuts being asked by district officials contradict a new emphasis by the district on preventive medical care, the central theme of the health fair.

Although the protesters were not allowed onto school property, many of the teachers put down their signs to take advantage of free medical checkups offered at the fair.

“This is a super idea,� said 22-year high school teacher Tom Youngerman, as he waited in a long line for a chiropractic spinal checkup. “But with the drastic reductions the district is asking in health care, I hope it isn’t just a show.�

Stephenson said the district’s proposal would, for example, charge $50 for emergency room visits and reduce accident coverage from 100% to 80% of expenses. The contract also proposes to stop medical benefits for retired teachers when they reach age 65, union President Ric Stephenson said.

In December, district officials declared an impasse in contract talks and asked for a state-appointed mediator. Negotiations with the mediator are scheduled to begin in mid-February.

In addition to preserving existing health benefits, the union wants an 8.5% salary raise. The district has offered a 6% increase.

District officials have said that combined salary and health care demands would elevate teacher pay well above the median income for educators in Orange County.