Nobody is going to deny the noble gesture shown by Morenci school administrators in accepting pay freezes. Although their contracts call for increases, all of the administrative staff agreed with the freeze in light of the district’s financial hardships.

In turn, board of education members responded with a gesture of their own: multi-year contracts, some spanning five years.

Our opposition to this move might be taken as an affront by some administrators, but it shouldn’t be. There’s not a single member of the staff that we would like to see go away.

However, appreciating someone’s skills and services should not equate to a five-year agreement. That goes well beyond a vote of confidence and on into dangerous territory.

One year is clearly too short. It’s not advantageous to either side. On the other hand, people fall out of favor for one reason or another. Morenci board members should know that without thinking back too many years in the past.

If that situation were to arise, the district would be forced to live with the long contract or take the expensive route: honoring the contractual agreement and paying the person for long after he or she has severed ties.

Multi-year contracts have been a matter of dispute for years among board members, spanning at least two decades. As it’s been pointed out in the past, contracts tend to follow a one-way street.

Employees can break the contract any time, but the board is forced to hold true to its word.