Blue Jeans Stall Teacher Contract Negotiations In Garden City

A federal mediator will be called in to contract negotiations for Garden City teachers, which stalled over a dispute about blue jeans.

Negotiators for the district and teachers union declared an impasse Wednesday, requiring that a mediator be brought in.

District officials want principals or building administrators to define what constitutes a professional dress code. The district says teachers’ dress should meet or exceed that of classified staff, who aren’t allowed to wear blue jeans.

The teachers want to decide for themselves what to wear. Teachers already overwhelmingly rejected a proposed contract that would have banned them from wearing blue jeans.

The Garden City Telegram reports that negotiators for both said money has not been an issue in the negotiations because the district faces a significant cut in state aid.