NORTHAMPTON — The Northampton Association of School Employees (NASE) union and the school district’s negotiating committee reached a tentative agreement on a new contract Wednesday, ending a work-to-rule action the union initiated on Monday.

Details were scarce on the terms of the deal, as neither side would comment publicly on the agreement’s fine print before its ratification. But both sides expressed satisfaction on having reached a compromise.

“I was happy we were able to come to a middle ground,” said NASE President Andrea Egitto. “It’s encouraging when you see the School Committee appreciate and acknowledge the jobs we do every day.”

Similar sentiments were expressed by Ward 3 School Committee member Emily Serafy-Cox, who chairs the negotiating committee.

“I knew we were zeroing in on a solution,” Serafy-Cox said. “I’m just so grateful we’ve developed a collaborative and respectful relationship with NASE.”

According to Egitto, around 70% of all union members in Northampton Public Schools, which includes custodial and clerical employees alongside teachers and educational staff, voted in the decision to enter work-to-rule, with 98% of those favoring the idea. Unlike a strike, where employees stop work entirely, a work-to-rule means that employees cease any voluntary work not strictly required by the terms of their contract.

The union’s initial proposal, submitted on Dec. 20, called for a 6% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) wage increase for 291 licensed staff, including teachers and administrators, to be applied every year of the proposed three-year contract that would begin July 1. For 155 other union members such as paraeducators, clerical workers, custodians and cafeteria workers, the proposed COLA increase is 8% annually.

The negotiating committee countered in April with two separate proposals, one with a COLA of 3% for hourly employees and 2.75% for those on salary for the first two years, with both hourly and salary receiving a 2.5% raise in the final year. The second proposal had a lower COLA but also provided additional concessions such as such as adding 30 minutes to the paid workday.

The work-to-rule lasted three days, with supporters standing outside the district’s six schools before the school day started holding signs of support for NASE. With the work-to-rule’s end, regularly planned activities for the end of the year will resume for students.

“Now we can all focus on the reasons why we’re doing this,” Serafy-Cox said. “Teachers and educators want to show up every day and concentrate on the young minds in front of them.”

With the work-to-rule over, the main issue now for the schools is how much spending the city is to allot in the upcoming fiscal year budget. Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra, who also heads the School Committee, has stated her intention to increase school spending by 5.8% in the upcoming fiscal budget, which according to Superintendent Portia Bonner would be enough to prevent layoffs but still see reductions in services and elimination of some positions via attrition.

Supporters of higher school spending, including NASE, have called for more than twice that amount.

The City Council is set to begin budget discussions during its next council meeting on Wednesday.