Teachers reduced their raise proposal from 5.3 percent to 4.6 percent. The board offered 2 percent and said the city can’t afford more without laying off teachers.
The Burlington Education Association’s offer “remains unaffordable and would require additional cuts to teaching staff and other important services,” said a statement that the board released.
Board chair Mark Porter said in the statement that he wants to return to the table. “The board remains confident that we can reach an agreement that broadens student learning, keeps teacher pay competitive, and is fiscally sustainable for our community,” he said.
Fran Brock, president of the Burlington Education Association and a teacher at Burlington High School, declined to comment Wednesday.
“Today’s session with the mediator was based on the fact-finder report and we are under obligation to stay quiet about that report for 10 days,” Brock said. “I’m going to uphold the process of collective bargaining and honor the 10-day silence.”
Brock added: “I will say that I’m disappointed that the board was so quick with this press release … We should be honoring the process.”
The two sides have been in protracted negotiations to renew a contract that expires August 31. The contract includes a clause to extend salaries and benefits beyond that date, however.
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It is a very mixed message coming from the Superintendent and the School Board that hired him. On the one hand, we are told that it is OK for the Superintendent to break the law by living in South Burlington in order to enroll his children in the district with the highest-paid teachers in the state. We are also told that it is OK for the School Board to spend many tens of thousands of dollars on a game-the-system, semi-fraudulent visa for Mr. Obeng that pretends his primary job is UVM professor instead of Superintendent.
But then, when it comes time to paying the teachers that teach our children, we are told there is not enough money to be competitive with a district like South Burlington, where Mr. Obeng has fled to. Imagine if the Superintendent was willing to put his family and money where his mouth is? And face the consequences of his decisions? Might Mr. Porter & the School Board have a stronger negotiating position when everyone at the table knows they are all in it together, instead of the decision-makers receiving special treatment and exemptions?
Will we ever see a day when the straw man argument falls by the wayside? Mr. Obeng’s hiring or ethical failings have nothing to do with the fact that teachers are now paid much more than the majority of taxpayers who fund their salaries. Asking for a 5% raise shows they are tone deaf to the struggles of the community trying to keep up with their always increasing demands. Certainly the South Burlington teachers are completely out of control as they barrel towards six-figure salaries and benefits beyond compare.
Teachers deserve good salaries. Thankfully Burlington teachers have been enjoying high salaries for many years, admittedly not at the ridiculous levels imposed upon South Burlington taxpayers. Because they are well paid, our teachers don’t need large raises every year. In fact, they don’t need any raise at all and the School Board is being generous offering 2%. The teacher’s union is worse than the mafia, but they’re not going to be able to start breaking legs as we fail to keep up with their demands for ever-spiraling payments.
Let’s not paint teachers as breaking the bank. A teacher in Burlington with a master’s degree and 10 years of service earns $66K. That’s a decent salary but by no means is that living large, especially considering the cost of living in and around Burlington.
@Susan Joy, I am not saying Burlington teachers should be paid the same as South Burlington. Property and income taxes around the state are already very high, in spite of (or perhaps because of) the Brigham decision and Act 60.
But I am saying the Superintendent and the School Board have unfortunately lost significant credibility because of the ethical failings you reference. Has the School Board made a reasonable offer given the economy and endless tax increases from Montpelier? Yes. But the School Board would be stronger & have more support for these negotiations if they were not cheating the system and coming up with nonsense loopholes for their own or the Superintendent’s self-gain. The actions of the School Board are not in isolation. It is Mr. Porter who is out there publicly defending Mr. Obeng’s misrepresentations about where he was going to live, etc. These are the people who are supposed to be examples and leaders for our children. Instead, their “leadership” amounts to: do as I say; not as I do.
Also, sad to say, with the exception of the courageous Max Tracy, the Burlington City Council has just taken action to weaken the residency requirement for city leaders. At the ballot box, the voters overwhelmingly rejected attempts to eliminate the residency requirement (twice in the last 15 years). So instead of honoring the voters who have repeatedly supported this law, the City Council shamefully amended it so as to have almost no meaning now. What next, will they try and say it’s OK to elect anyone Mayor of Burlington, so long as the person resides somewhere in Chittenden County?
So a teacher in their early thirties with a government job working less than 7 months out of each year, is paid seventy thousand dollars courtesy of me and other taxpayers who make less working full time? And next year wants that amount increased to 75,000? With health and retirement benefits that cost even more. No, this does not sound reasonable to me!
@Penelope – Teaching really is a walk in the park. Perhaps you should do the job of teacher for less and can save us all a bunch of money! I imagine you would have no problem with educating at-risk students who are experiencing emotional/physical/sexual abuse at home. It sounds like you can show up for the 8 hours of paid time and not need any prep time. I suppose you could channel the entire scope and sequence of the Common Core across all content areas, to students of all stages of development, regardless of disability, with flawless collaboration skills, and can work with all families regardless of socio-economic status or culture.
If Burlington Teachers had ‘The Right Stuff’ and were at the top of their game they would be teaching in the South Burlington School System making that wage that they are envying.
Do your homework, Penelope. Here:
http://www.nctq.org/docs/Teachers_-_Burlin…
A teacher does not approach $70K until earning a master’s degree and having 12 years of service. That’s not likely for a teacher in their early 30’s. More likely, a teacher in their early 30’s is making mid $50K, which is not that great of a salary.
Let’s also remember teacher’s pay taxes as well. On top of everything jhilt says, how would you like to contribute to your own salary with your taxes?
“a teacher in their early 30’s is making mid $50K, which is not that great of a salary.”
Assuming your figures are correct, $50k is the Vermont median income for an entire household. Which includes potentially two income earners in the same household. And which includes people at the end of their working careers, not at the beginning. So, yes, a teacher earning $50k in his or her early thirties is earning more than most of the people who are supporting that teacher. Plus, that $50k is for a 9-month job with fantastic benefits.
http://www.deptofnumbers.com/income/vermon…
$50K being the median income for a family does not make it a good salary. In fact, I’d say it is a problem. I’d look at the fact that the average income in Chittenden county, which is where these teachers work, and see it is closer to $85K. That’s quite a bit more than your numbers suggest and quite a bit more than teachers in their early 30’s make.
By the way, I wouldn’t call a teaching position a 9-month job unless I was grossly misinformed as to what a teacher does.