SCUSD Proposes to Freeze Teachers' Salaries

 

In spite of a $19 million dollar surplus, ( see blog post below)

News Messenger Volume 42, No. 6 | October 15, 2021

SCUSD Rejects SCTA Olive Branch, Demands 5-Year Wage Freeze And Other Concessions That Would REDUCE Take-Home Pay by an Average of $750 PER MONTH

On August 25, we presented an olive branch to the District. There are several crises impacting the District: The approximately 200 vacancies among certificated staff; The massive shortage of substitutes that has resulted in an average of 54 classes per day (affecting 2000 or more students without either a regular or substitute teacher) The District's failure to provide services to students with disabilities that resulted in legal action by the California Department of Education; The challenges in providing a safe and healthy learning environment with the resumption of in-person instruction; during the pandemic; The need to establish and staff an Independent Study program for those students unable to return to in-person instruction. In order to work together to focus on these crises, we proposed to extend our contract with a modest salary increase (3.5%) through June 30, 2022. You can view our proposal here. SCUSD Rejects SCTA's Olive Branch After refusing to respond to our proposal for weeks, on Wednesday SCUSD's bargaining team formally rejected our proposal. Unlike other school districts (including others that are in significantly worse financial shape than SCUSD) that are offering salary increases and other significant incentives to recruit and retain staff, SCUSD's demands for concessions became even more extreme. SCUSD presented its proposal as a package, meaning take it or leave it. The District reiterated it was maintaining all of its previous proposals, as well as additional or changed demands in the following areas: A 5-Year Wage Freeze; Until Wednesday, the District's unacceptable demand for wage freezes was for three years: school years 19-20. 20-21, an 21-22. On Wednesday, the District increased its demand for an additional two years--22-23 and 23-24. You can view the SCUSD proposal here. By comparison, during the same five-year period he is demanding wage freezes, Superintendent Aguilar's pay will increase by 17.5%. Concessions in Health Insurance that Would Result in $750 PER MONTH Reductions in Take-Home Pay. In addition, to the new 5-year wage freeze demand, the District re-proposed its demand for significant cuts in health insurance, including the right to change insurance at any time to any plan the District determines is "appropriate" and increasing costs to employees that would reduce the take-home pay by an average of $750 per month per employee. Some employees would see their health insurance costs increase by $17,500 or more per year. You can view the SCUSD proposal on benefits here. Increased Work Time for Staff, Without Additional Compensation: If a 5-year wage freeze and enormous reductions in take-home pay through health insurance concessions weren't enough, SCUSD re-proposed significant changes to the employees' work day, including eliminating pay for educators who work through their prep periods and other unnecessary changes. Off-Salary Schedule Bonuses: As part of its take it or leave it proposal, the District offered three one-time bonuses of $1000 per year (before taxes) for 21-22, 22-23, 23-24. The bonuses which, according to the District, are "to address additional costs and duties related to COVID-19, less any and all applicable taxes and withholdings." The District specifically excludes substitutes from receiving the "bonus." For the average regular staff member, the "bonus" would only offset approximately 15% of the $750 per month reduction in take-home pay and no one would be eligible for the "bonus" unless we agreed to every other concession the District is demanding--including the 5-year wage freeze.