TPS Negotiations October 6, 2026

Topeka Public Schools labor negotiations, October 6, 2026: The parties reviewed tentative agreements on sick-leave language (Article 43), an esports coaching addendum, and a 15-day response time for Article 9. Salary and benefits remained under discussion. The district’s proposal was a minimum increase of 3% up to about 3.3%, while the employee representatives kept their proposals for Appendix A and Article 38 on the table, including changes to the board-paid share of health insurance across plan levels. No salary or benefits agreement was reached during the meeting.

The district reported preliminary enrollment-related funding reductions of about $1.1 million for the current year and $2.9 million for next year, including decreases in at-risk, bilingual, and career and technical education funding. A proposal to remove two duty days in each of two future contract years was not accepted; the district said it was not prepared to negotiate multiple future years while the current contract remained unresolved. After disagreement over when the duty-day issue could be considered, the employee representatives declared impasse and called for mediation. No procurement activity or purchasing decisions were identified.