AHEM Negotiations: Mediation to continue on Friday, Jan. 2

The process to determine an updated working agreement for Anoka-Hennepin Education Minnesota (AHEM) will continue in mediation following a four-hour negotiation session held today at the Educational Services Center in Anoka. 

The school district provided a proposal for the AHEM negotiators to consider and discussion will continue at the next scheduled mediation session set for Friday, Jan. 2.  

Mediation limits what can be shared publicly

When the negotiation process is in mediation, the details of the proposals shared in these meetings cannot be shared in compliance with state law. That stated, before entering mediation, AHEM did share three proposals and the District responded with three financial proposals for the two-year contract period. 

• The most recent proposal from AHEM: (September 2025)
  • 11.05% total package increase (K-12); 
  • $42.5 million in new money
  • Increases in salary range from 5.1% to 15.8% over 2 years. 
  • District contributions to health insurance would increase by 34.3% for those with single coverage and 40.5% for those with family coverage over two years.
• The most recent proposal from the district: (September 2025)
  • 6.58% total package increase (K-12); 
  • $25 million in new money
  • Increases in salary range from 2.0% to 12.7% over 2 years.
  • District contributions to health insurance would increase by 11.1% for those with single coverage and 25.7% for those with family coverage over two years.

Financial and operational stability

The school district budget accounts for 2.5% increases on salaries and 5% increases on benefits to negotiate terms and conditions for its 13 bargaining groups and provides compensation increases for its non-union employees. To date, six of the nine bargaining groups whose contracts were up for renewal this year have settled their working agreements within the budgeted amounts. 

The district is committed to the goal of improving salary and benefits for employees while working within tight budget parameters. The School Board recently completed a three-phase $22.2 million budget reduction and reallocation process. Looking ahead, obligations for unfunded mandates such as Minnesota Paid Leave also provide additional budget pressure. 

The negotiation process has included nine meetings in a process that started in July. 

More information: Visit ahschools.us/negotiations for updated information including FAQ’s and charts on how the most recent proposals would impact salary and benefits for early career, mid-career, top-of-schedule and average/median teachers.