June 12, 2009

Education

Pay Increases But No Pay Raises in Johnston

Carroll Andrew Morse

Has the Johnston teachers union sold its junior members out? A cursory reading of Mark Reynolds' 7-to-7 item in yesterday's Projo could lead one to believe that the union has secured raises for it's higher-paid members, but nothing for the lower tiers…

Teachers at the 10th step will receive a 1.75 percent raise during the upcoming 2009-2010 school year while teachers at all lower steps will see no increase in their wages.
However, I think that it's more likely that the clause "teachers at all lower steps will see no increase in their wages" isn't quite accurate. The next sentence reveals that pay "raises" and pay "increases" are treated differently in the parlance being used, and that one can occur without the other…
The contract, which also covers the current school year, does not grant teachers any retroactive raise for 2008-2009, although teachers have received $452,000 in step increases, [Johnston School Superintendent Margaret Iacovelli] said.
So if what will happen in 2009-2010 is similar to what happened in 2008-2009, Johnston teachers in the lower steps will receive pay "increases" via progression through the steps, but not pay "raises" related changes in the amounts associated with each step.

The question is, does the parsing of an explanation in this manner help or hinder the public's understanding of the issues involved?

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Reynolds' post is not a play on words, but just plain wrong. The salary steps will not be increased, but the teachers' wages will increase as they move up the step pay scale. A small increase to top step teachers, like 1.75 percent, usually offsets other increases like healthcare contributions, so no teacher will see a decrease in pay. Not really a sellout to those not yet at top step.

Posted by: mikeinri at June 12, 2009 9:05 PM

we all know the step increases are actually 3-3.5% increases, so even without raises they still make out. What other profession can you double your salary in 10 years? It's a wonder how the School Committee can set the tax rate and pull a 1.75% raise out of a hat when I was hit with a $500 supplemental tax increase last year. They get steps and raises and I get a supplemental tax bill, what a state!

Posted by: Jack at June 13, 2009 11:44 AM
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