Orange County teachers reject district's new contract

Orange County teachers have voted to reject the new contracts offered by the district.

The proposed contract was rejected by a nearly four-to-one margin, a landslide victory for those teachers opposed to the contract. Now, it is back to the bargaining table for Orange County teachers and the school board. 

Coach Mark Nolan is a teacher at Oak Ridge High School.

"I'm worried that we're losing some good talent here by having to look at other places as far as looking at other school districts or taking out a different line of work."

Next year, the Department of Education predicts there will be 10,000 vacant teacher positions across the state.

"We might not have that many vacancies. But one is one too many," said Wendy Doromal, president of the teacher union.

With 79 percent of the vote, teachers voted 'no' on the latest proposed contract that would have given teachers set raises. 

But some teachers say the contract included hikes in health insurance costs and that would have canceled out the raise and even left some employees with less money than they made last year. 

"Teachers are nickled and dimed," said Doromal. "It's not just that they have low wages. They're expected to work for free. That's not OK."

This rejection marks the first time Orange County teachers have voted 'no' on a contract. 

Now the Orange County Classroom Teachers Association will have to fight for a better deal with the school district.