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BOE gives 3.75% raises; same as teachers negotiated
by Gregory R. Norfleet · News · April 24, 2014


School support staff members and principals will get a 3.75-percent pay increase after the Board of Education last week voted 3-2 to bump up the superintendent’s recommendation of 3.3 percent.


The increase adds about $9,000 to nearly $235,000 in raises, to about $244,000 in salary and benefit increases for the 2014-15 school year. More than $158,000 of that total are increases negotiated last year with the West Branch Education Association as part of a two-year contract.

The second year of the WBEA contract amounted to a 3.75-percent increase, from which the school board based its increase for the support staff and principals.

Board members Mike Owen, Richard Paulus and Kathy Knoop voted in favor of the 3.75-percent increase, board members Deb Schreiber and Mike Colbert voted against.

The increase boosts overall salary and benefits to nearly $6.3 million, which is about 75 percent of the school’s $8.4 million general fund budget. West Branch Community Schools overall budget is estimated at $13.8 million for the 2014-15 school year.

Schreiber raised the issue of taking a closer look at salaries, suggesting pay raises be tied to goals, though she does not want a “true” Pay-for-Performance system.

She then asked why the support staff and administrators would not receive the 3.75 percent teachers would get.

Knoop said she would like to see administrators get the same increase as teachers.

Owen wanted to know how they compared to other schools, which Schreiber agreed was important information.

Superintendent Kevin Hatfield said comparing jobs is not as easy as comparing titles since even custodians have different duties from school to school.

However, the superintendent’s main opposition to the 3.75-percent increase, which he repeated throughout the discussion, was that teachers complain when their union works hard to negotiate a contract and then the rest of the non-union staff “reaps the benefits.”

“Can we afford the increase?” Owen asked of the $9,000 difference between Hatfield’s recommended 3.3-percent increase and the teachers’ 3.75-percent increase.

“Yes,” Hatfield said, “Though I’m not sure it is the most sound thing we could do.”

Owen said he was most concerned about staff with lower-paying jobs.

“I love the administrators we have, but …” he said.

Knoop wanted to see the district research comparable salaries before next year’s budget. Schreiber wanted to see if the board could delay approving salary increases until May, giving the administration time to research salaries now.

“I think we will find we are fairly competitive,” Hatfield said.