![Santa Rosa County School District employees and Santa Rosa Professional Educators, the teachers union, supporters expressed their displeasure with the district's proposed contract during an Aug. 10 public hearing. Union president Rhonda Chavers announced Sept. 8 the district employees' rejection of the contract. [FILE PHOTO | Press Gazette]](http://127.0.0.1/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/ghows-DA-57130f73-2548-0500-e053-0100007f3dcf-b5323da3-scaled.jpeg)
MILTON — The Santa Rosa County School District employees rejected the district’s proposed contract revisions for the 2016-2017 school year in a ratification vote held Sept. 5 and 6.
With 59 percent of the employee bargaining units casting ballots, the "No" votes against ratification of the contract received 85.2 percent of the vote, with the "Yes" votes in favor of ratification receiving 14.8 percent.
"We are pleased with the results of the ratification vote," Santa Rosa Professional Educators President Rhonda Chavers said. "The district's employees do not buy the story that the district can't afford the fair and reasonable settlement proposal recommended by the Special Magistrate at impasse. This rejection of the district's proposed contract sends that message to the superintendent and the school board loud and clear."
According to Florida law, since all parties did not ratify the contract, the school board's contract imposed at their Aug. 10 legislative hearing shall take effect as of that date with respect to the salary revisions only.
The language revisions proposed by the district will not take effect due to the failure of ratification, according to Chavers.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Santa Rosa teachers reject contract revisions