An Illinois school district has stalled on salary negotiations with the local teachers’ union while approving $285,000 annually for its incoming superintendent – almost $50,000 more than the governor’s $237,900.
“It’s like we really don’t matter, but we’re the frontliners in the school system,” Maria Altamirano, a fifth-grade bilingual teacher in the Rockford Public Schools (RPS) district, told WIFR.com. “We’re the ones that are there with the students.”
Altamirano and almost 2,000 other Rockford Education Association (REA) members have been working at the district without any new contract since June 30.
Since October, negotiations have entered federal mediation with a focus on salaries, special education caseload and retiree health insurance, according to WIFR.
“According to the latest Illinois Report Card, the average salary at RPS falls behind the state by nearly $7,000, with the district sitting at $71,486,” Nathaniel Langley wrote for the news outlet. “RPS’s employment website shows most teaching positions start pay of around $43,000.”
