A couple times a week if you are a member of DTU you get an
e-mail from them describing some workshop, training or something else. Strangely
not one has been about teacher raises. Well a few weeks back I took to replying
to the e-mails asking about the raises. For a while they went ignored but then
they finally replied.
We are waiting to identify all teachers who
are eligible for the money, including charter teachers so we know how many
will share in the pot.
I then asked the following questions: since
charter schools don't use the CAST how do we know who is effective and highly
effective, the two groups I thought were eligible? If it is a bonus are retired
teachers going to get it or if it is a raise are first year teachers going to
get it? Will the teachers at the seemingly 20 new charter schools that just
opened up be eligible too?
Their answer, don’t know.
I am a proud union member but I have to tell
you in times like these I ask myself why. The district has had the money for
months and it seems like neither they nor the union are in much of a hurry. Meanwhile
Pinellas County just struck a deal to give all their teachers substantial
raises including making the starting salary 40,000 dollars.
Your additional raise/bonus is being held up by the other union negotiations that are going on. I think the strategy is to allow the other union groups to get as much as they possibly can from this years budget, and once that is accomplished all union groups will come together to push to divide up addition money from the state, that was supposed to be for teachers, so that there is equity for all union members. More simply restated, it appears that your additional bonus or raise is being held up by the non-teachers union groups slow negotiation process and with the end goal of all union groups coming together to divvy up the money that was set aside for teachers. Regardless of whether you think this is right or wrong, I hope that helps to clear up any confusion.
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