Hawai'i's public school teachers are seeking substantial pay raises that would boost top annual salaries to more than $100,000 in two years.

Negotiations between the state and the teachers' union reached impasse Thursday, and a federal mediator will join the talks today.

But the situation is nowhere near the standoff that led to a statewide teacher strike and paralyzed public schools for three weeks in 2001.

"We're making progress, and the parties have agreed to continue to meet on a regular basis," said Guy Tajiri, negotiator for the Department of Education.

The 13,000-member Hawai'i State Teachers Association is seeking a two-year contract with raises of 12 percent and 16 percent by the end of each year, respectively, said Joan Husted, the union's executive director.

HSTA hopes to have a contract settled by mid-April, she said.

Meanwhile, negotiations with another major union, the Hawaii Government Employees Association, will be referred to an arbitration panel on Monday if a contract is not settled before then.

Leaders of the 24,000-member HGEA declined to comment while talks are ongoing.

In 2005, an arbitrator awarded HGEA average raises of 5 percent in each year of a two-year contract. The union represents mostly white-collar workers.

A third major union, the blue-collar United Public Workers, is also negotiating with the state.

Contracts with all three unions expire on June 30.

The HSTA proposal would increase the $39,900 starting salary for teachers to $45,000, and top-scale pay would rise from $73,000 to $102,000, Husted said.

Average teacher pay would increase from approximately $52,000 to $60,000.

"We want to be competitive, salary-wise," Husted said, noting that the state will need to hire approximately 1,500 more teachers next year to replace others who leave Hawai'i, find other jobs or retire.

Tajiri declined to characterize the state's reaction to the proposal, but said he had not yet presented a counteroffer on wages.

HSTA is also asking that the state pay all premiums for the voluntary employees' beneficiary association trust through which the union purchases heath benefits for its members. The state currently pays 60 percent.

When HSTA was negotiating its current contract two years ago, the union initially sought raises of 15 percent for each year, while the state offered 1.5 percent each year.

The final deal gave teachers average raises of 9.5 percent over two years — a sizable increase, but far less than the original request. The biggest raises went to new teachers, while across-the-board raises were far more modest.

The raises sought now would meet salary goals for 2009 that HSTA set several years ago.

The union is also seeking a 6 percent salary differential for teachers who have earned doctorate degrees.

And the union wants teacher pay rankings to be based on actual years of service, rather than lumped into three-year blocks.

HSTA is also asking for: