I received the following message about a huge raise the
board plans to give to their auditor.
I follow your blog regularly and
feel that you need to address an issue I was just made aware of. I have
been told by contacts in the budget and HR office downtown that the Board
Members have just approved a $30,000 raise for their PERSONAL auditor.
This is insane. Nobody in the district should get a RAISE that is almost
equal to the starting teacher salary. Not only that but I am told the
auditor is also getting an assistant— so she gets more money and less
work— i don’t know a single teacher who gets that hookup. Also,
the board members have recommended hiring a personal assistant for each of them
– for what I don’t know.
I just find it interesting that they
are handing out raises and building an army of staff when teachers do not even
have an approved raise this year. This is crazy.
I decided to ask the district if it was true and contacted the director
of communications. First let me tell you she has always been professional, polite
and helpful and I know it can’t be the easiest thing either as I am sure some
in the district consider me the enemy. It’s
not her fault her answer blew me away!
The Board recently approved an adjustment to the Board Auditor’s
salary. This is a district position that reports to the Board. The
increase of $23,000 was made after a market analysis comparing Duval’s salary
for this position to other similar sized districts in the state of
Florida. The analysis also compared the scope of work and personnel
managed by this position. The adjusted salary and organizational changes
align the salary and work of the Duval County Board auditor with these
districts.
Okay, sounds reasonable right, the board plans to give its
auditor a 23 thousand dollar raise, they said they did an analysis and that’s
fair market, okay fair enough.
But then I decided to look at the fair market for teachers. Duval
often compares itself to the other six big districts, Broward, Orange, Hillsborough,
Dade and Palm Beach, so that’s where I went
In Hillsborough county teachers start at 38k, are making 42
by year 4 and if I taught there, year 13, I would be making 54 thousand dollars.
In Dade County they start at 40,500, something it takes ten
years to get to in Duval County and if I taught in Dade I would now be making
about three grand more.
Let’s check Broward County
They start at 39 and by year 4 they are at 41, again making
Duval’s pay scale look shameful.
I also have no doubt if I would have continued to check I
would have continued to find how ridiculously bad our pay scale is compared to comparably
sized districts but I don’t think my blood pressure could have taken it.
Here is the districts pay scale so you can see how embarrassing
it is.
Then the city and district wonder why we have a teacher
morale problem and why we can’t keep teachers, here is an idea pay them fair
market value or is that just for district staff and not for teachers!
Absolutely shameful.