A large portion of the Maintenance and Operation (M&O) budget is payroll in a majority of districts around the state. According to my superintendent and director of finance our salaries make up about 73% of the M&O budget. My superintendent believes many districts are nearing the 85%-90% range for salaries. Having a budget that is payroll heavy in our financially challenging times can make it difficult to make necessary cuts to the budget without affecting the districts staffing patterns.
By increasing base salaries across the state, M&O funds had become more focused on payroll and less on instruction. Some may say if you spend more on payroll you will improve instruction, but this does not always translate to increased student success.
There are many positive and negative aspects of a five percent salary increase across the board for personnel. On the positive side, employee morale would be improved and most would feel appreciated by the gesture. This increase in salaries could also draw more qualified and experienced educators to your district, but more experienced could be more expensive as well. Negatively speaking, an increase of five percent could cause many problems for any school district. The lower end of the spectrum employees like bus drivers, custodians, maintenance workers, and cafeteria workers may not see the same gains as professional contracted employees. Also the strain on the budget for the future is a concern. The five percent raise could drive the M&O budget beyond a manageable threshold leaving a district strapped for cash in difficult times. Although raises seem like the right thing to do, it is very important that all variables are evaluated and discussed thoroughly before any action is taken on such a large increase.
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