Durham approves short-term fix for classified staff salaries through end of school year
The Durham School Board voted Thursday to maintain the 11% salary increase for classified staff for the remainder of the school year.
This increase, exceeding last year's pay, serves as an interim "fix" while a long-term solution is developed.
DPS released the following statement:
"This vote ends a period of uncertainty and anxiety for our classified employees, but it does not end our commitment to providing employees with higher wages. Durham Public Schools will continue looking for opportunities to increase employee wages as we begin discussions around next year’s budget."
The decision comes after over a month of debate regarding the district's ongoing salary issues.
Thursday night, Durham Public Schools Board of Education members met and discussed how much to pay classified employees. The board had previously weighed four options, but only two were on the table Thursday night.
Option 1 was the 11% raise, and Option 2 included a 15% raise. While Option 1 is covered in the budget. Option 2 is $2 million over budget.
Both eliminate the salary study and restore legacy steps, which mean credit for outside experience, including private practice.
Durham Public School employees have held numerous protests, and four days of school have been canceled over this issue.
Although some employees will make less than what they earned after the October raises, they will still see an increase compared to the previous year's compensation.
DPS Interim Superintendent Catty Moore and the school board chair held a news conference at 11 p.m. after the meeting. They said this decision was difficult, but necessary.
Moore has said offering competitive salaries is long overdue but explained DPS has delayed their decision to meet with county commissioners this week.
Moore said, if DPS is planning to ask the county for money, it would be best to do that for the next salary study.
Finance officials cautioned the board that this 11% represents the maximum achievable without exceeding budget constraints.
The board on Thursday heard from Kerry Crutchfield, the district’s newly hired comptroller, about what he has found in the budget.
Crutchfield’s report said the salary study had important omissions and implementing it was like putting a square peg in a round hole. He recommends Option 1.
The district could implement salary decreases in the future once a permanent plan is in place.
Moving forward, the comptroller presented a plan for a future salary study.
Saying that while portions of the previous HIL study can be incorporated, it was ultimately flawed due to its lack of implementation plan and cost analysis.
Additionally, some proposed steps exceeded state maximums, necessitating adjustments to align with current market trends and budgetary limitations.
Who is considered a 'classified' employee?
DPS Employees are either classified or certified.
Classified employees were impacted, but certified employees were not.
Bus drivers are classified employees but were not impacted due to a different past pay study for them.
Classified employees include:
- Instructional assistance
- Physical/occupational therapists
- Transportation workers (bus mechanics, supervisors, drivers)
- Building services
- Grounds crews
- Cafeteria workers
- Custodial staff
Certified employees include:
- Teachers
- Speech language pathologists
