Waterford — The Representative Town Meeting on Monday night approved a three-year contract between the Board of Education and the Waterford Administrators' and Supervisors' Association, one of several unions representing school employees. 

The agreement, which settles wages and insurance deductibles, will go into effect in July 2022 — a month after the one-year agreement approved earlier this year expires.

Superintendent Tom Giard thanked the union for "amicable and productive conversations" and said both parties recognized the uncertain economic climate.

Eight RTM members voted in favor of the contract and zero voted against it; seven abstained. Three of those who abstained did not respond to requests for comment by press deadline Thursday.

One of the key provisions in the settlement with WASA is that the three-year total wage increase is 6%. Giard said the 2%-a-year raises for three years is significantly below the trend of settlements across the state, which is 7.81%.

The contract also states the employee health insurance premium cost increases 0.5% each of the three years.

The deductible an employee must pay as part of the high-deductible plan increases during the term of this contract. The deductible for a single plan in 2021–22 is $2,250, and rises to $2,500 between 2022 and 2025. The deductible for the two or more family plan for 2021–22 is $4,500 and rises to $5,000 between 2022 and 2025.

"On behalf of all the hardworking members of WASA, we are happy to have completed the contract negotiation process with the Waterford Board of Education in a way that was collaborative and productive," said Andre Hauser, principal of the town's high school. "We arrived at a contract that is fair for the school leaders in WASA and fair to the town, and I'm glad that the RTM recognized that in their vote to approve."

j.vazquez@theday.com