The community's largest employer, the West Fargo School District, is making a major change in the way it does business with its employees.

In a policy change placed on first reading Monday night at the regular meeting of the West Fargo School Board, the Board approved a resolution stating that it will phase out the current early retirement policy in place for teachers, effective July of 2007.

That policy, which has been on the books since the summer of 1995, isn't serving the District in the same capacity it did when it was originally placed in the District's policy manual, Superintendent Chuck Cheney said. Therefore, the Board's policy committee recommended a course of action that takes the system, which gives teachers near the retirement ";Rule of 85"; the option to take an early retirement package with partial benefits.

";We feel that we have good teachers in this District, and we want those teachers to stay in our District as long as possible,"; Cheney said. ";This policy just isn't as favorable to the District as it was 10 years ago.";

The resolution passed by the Board states three main reasons for removing the early pension option from the books. First, the District pointed to a resources issue, saying that ";maintaining maximum flexibility in applying District resources for the greatest benefit to student learning"; was essentially impaired when teachers decide to retire early. The second reason pointed to ";difficulties finding replacement teachers"; for certain positions that make it ";less desirable to encourage members of the teaching profession to retire early."; In other words, in a growing District, unexpectedly open positions can be a liability when preparing for the next academic year.

Thirdly, the District wants to continue its ";commitment to compensating existing staff and adding staff to meet current growth as well as projected accelerated growth,"; meaning the Administration wants to focus on the classrooms added each year thanks to a growing District.

The resolution also states that the early retirement policy ";was implemented with the understanding that the West Fargo School Board has full and complete control over the continuance of any early retirement incentives,"; which means the item is not up for discussion in a collaborative bargaining session.

";We struggled with this and worked very hard,"; Karen Nitzkorski, Board member and policy committee member, said. ";We're covering our battle scars.";

Some members of the Board have long shown their discontent with the early retirement option. Duane Hanson, Board President, voiced his displeasure with the police last year when a Cheney Middle School teacher opted for early retirement, leaving the building with an unexpected staff position vacant.

In a voice vote on that issue, Hanson was the only vote against awarding the teacher early retirement.

With the change in policy, Cheney said the Administration will be asking all of those wishing to seek early retirement, which pays a calculated percentage of benefits to a teacher according to time served in the District and their proximity to actual retirement age, to apply for the benefit no later than Jan. 15, 2007. The Board will approve any applications, and will determine what percentage, if any, of benefits the teacher applying for benefits will receive.

West Fargo Education Association President Mark Bernsten said the change will be a tough pill to swallow for those near their projected retirement, because it takes away that early option, Cheney said.

The Board also made a break for change in the policy currently used in contract negotiations in another policy change that will be up for a second reading at the Board's next meeting, on Oct. 24.

The Board approved a change in language that adds the option of ";good faith negotiations"; to the current policy that limits contract discussions to collective bargaining. Cheney said the move is to give the District another avenue to use when contracts are up again in 2007.

";This leaves the door open to either process,"; Cheney said. ";It doesn't forsake the collaborative bargaining process we currently use, but it gives us options.";

Last year's collective bargaining process was at times contentious, and an impasse turned the contract talks over to a panel of three people that ironed out the wrinkles for the current teacher/District contract. The talks lasted nearly three months.

Both the early retirement policy and the negotiations policy will be placed on second reading for passage and implementation at that next Board meeting.