Moorhead teachers working without contracts pack the school board meeting prior to negotiations

Moorhead — It's one final push for a new deal.

Teachers in Moorhead have been working without a contract all year, but Monday night, teachers had their voices heard one last time before the big day at the bargaining table.

The house was so packed at the district office that people were sitting on the floor, while others were forced to peek through the doorway. Most were wearing blue teacher union t-shirts, a message of unification among the 560 teachers in the district.

The union and school board have been trying to workout a new two-year deal. The original contract expired back in June.

After 10 meetings, the union asked for a mediator to get involved, something that hasn't happened in Moorhead in more than a decade.

There are three main sticking points — the big one being health care — as teachers say the district has not chipped in any additional money in a decade.

The two other issues include better compensation for early childhood educators and more time to work on paperwork for special education employees.

Both sides say they are feeling positive going into Wednesday's mediation session.