Ladue Ed

8 EDUCATION BOARD APPROVES NEW SALARIES

SYDNEY CRUMP managing editor

The 2019–20 school year marks the end of the Ladue School District’s salary schedule, known as the Master Agreement. Salary schedules determine how much money a teacher is paid based on their education level and experience. Every three years, the district’s salary schedule is reevaluated. The revised Master Agreement was approved in a 6-1 vote by the Ladue Board of Education Jan. 27.

The task of negotiating a new salary schedule that satisfies both the board members and teachers is a long and exhausting process for everyone involved. This school year, U.S. History teacher Mike Hill is the director of the Meet and Confer group, which includes three administrative representatives and three teachers who take into consideration teachers’ concerns regarding their salaries.

“Public school teachers in Missouri are allowed to join unions, but Missouri statute does not allow them to strike,” Hill said. “So, what public teachers do to have their collective voices heard within a district is elect a group that will act as their bargaining agent with district administration.”

Three years ago, the salary schedule was revised to compete with the salary schedules of other surrounding districts. It is important to compete with other districts to attract new teachers and staff.

“The idea behind [the most recent salary schedule] was, ‘Let’s get Ladue teachers up to where they’re competitive with surrounding school districts,’” Hill said.

The Ladue Educator’s Association is also involved in the negotiation of Ladue’s salary schedule every three years. LEA president and English teacher

Teachers gather in the multipurpose room as U.S. History teacher Mike Hill speaks to the Board of Education Jan. 27. There was a large teacher presence at the January board meeting to show support for the new salary schedule. “As an LEA rep at the building, any of my colleagues are free — or should feel free — to come to me and say, ‘Here’s an issue that I’m having,’” Hill said. (Photos by Nicole Kalishman)

Shruti Upadhyay works with Hill and attends the Meet and Confer meetings to work on creating a salary schedule that meets the needs of teachers.

“Once a month, we meet and talk about district level concerns,” Upadhyay said. “It’s not just about the high school.”

According to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, many states, including Missouri, are feeling the effects of the nation-wide teacher shortage, in part because many teachers can find higher-paid jobs elsewhere. The starting salary for most teachers in Missouri is $31, 842, placing the state at number 49 in the country. “Right now, there’s a teacher shortage across the nation,” Upadhyay said. “For the amount of hours and work that we put in, teachers are not paid enough. One of the reasons why people are leaving the field and going into other professions is salary.” Students like senior Lisa Miller want to see teachers paid more for the long hours and hard work they put in to meet the needs of students. Miller believes that to prevent the teacher shortage from worsening, school districts need to incentivize them by increasing their salaries.

“I think [teachers] should absolutely be paid more because they’re amazing – and they’re here for us,” Miller said. “I’ve always said if I had my way, football players and teachers’ salaries would be switched.”

The Master Agreement not only addresses teacher salaries but also issues like health insurance. The main goal of Meet and Confer is to create a master plan that meets the needs of the district as a whole.

“What we’ve negotiated with the Board of Education is going to be something that a lot of teachers are going to be really pleased with,” Hill said.