During a year when more than 40 teaching positions could be eliminated, some Hamilton County school board members say they can’t support a proposed pay raise for five workers.
At Thursday’s school board meeting, the proposed $369 million budget showed $51,600 worth of salary and benefit adjustments to five workers’ paychecks who have taken on increased workloads in the past five years.
“At this point, I’m very uncomfortable with that,” school board Chairman Kenny Smith said Friday. “During hard economic times, as we try to keep 90-plus percent of our money going into the classrooms and we are presented with eliminating 46 positions, to give five people a raise during this time and during this budget, that would be very tough to pass I think.”
Superintendent Dr. Jim Scales said the five workers — Nancy Reed, Lakweshia Tibbs Ewing, Alvena Kaufman, Gloria Moore and Sheryl Rogers — are paid as coordinators or managers but have the workload of directors. He said he wants to promote each of the women to director status so they are paid according to their duties.
“When we cut positions in the district, those duties are assumed by somebody, they don’t just go away,” Dr. Scales said. “And over the years, these individuals in some combination have picked up those responsibilities, because we’re still providing the services.”
School board member Rhonda Thurman said she thinks the raises are “a terrible idea,” and the money should instead go to saving teaching positions.
“I do not know how giving them a raise is going to lighten their workload,” Ms. Thurman said. “We cannot afford this.”
But other school board members said if the workers have more duties, they should be compensated for them.
School board member Jeffrey Wilson said he’s sensitive to the lean times, but has no problem with the pay increases.
“I think we have to support our workers, the people who are working hard and carrying more than their share of the load,” Mr. Wilson said. “I don’t think we should attack the employees or criticize them. If we have the capacity and it keeps us within the budget, I think it’s more than fair to reward them accordingly.”