ALPENA — The Alpena Public Schools Board of Education on Monday approved a three-year contract with the union representing the district’s paraprofessionals, security, and librarians.

The negotiated contract includes a 90-cent per hour increase in 2021-22 and a 25-cent per hour increase in both 2022-23 and 2023-24, according to a press release from the Alpena Educational Support Professionals II Association.

Each employee in the unit will also receive a $500 off schedule stipend in all three years, one paid holiday — one more paid holiday than the employees previously received — and an opportunity for the district to buy back up to five unused sick days from each paraprofessional annually with some conditions.

The district’s self-funded insurance plan, which is a health savings account, will continue, with the district providing a $450 match for single subscribers and a $900 match for family coverage when the employee contributes the same amount to their account.

Additionally, the paraprofessional float program was fully inserted into the contract, which allows the district to use paraprofessionals in each building to cover absent paraprofessionals.

Alpena ESP II president Jan Kaiser said in the news release it was a “long and arduous process,” but it’s one of the best contracts she’s seen in a long time.

The paraprofessionals began bargaining in March.

Superintendent Dave Rabbideau said on Monday he was happy the contract was approved.

“If this were a more normal year, I would have hoped to have been settled long in advance of the 30th,” he said. “It’s good progress in crazy times. I hope to settle with the two other units soon.”

Michigan Education Association UniServ Director Deb Larson said in the release that, although it has taken 11 years, it is the first time wages will exceed the 10% pay cut employees took in 2013.

“These are some of the lowest paid employees in the district,” she said. “It’s great to see these paraprofessionals return to and exceed the past wage reduction. With educational funding increasing, we hope to continue to improve these employees’ wages and benefits in the future.”

There are about 116 employees in the ESP II union.

Contracts for the district’s teachers and bus drivers expired Wednesday, although Larson said the teacher’s union has extended its contract to Aug. 31. Larson said she requested the same extension for the bus drivers but the district has not replied.