After months of haggling, the Leon County School District and its teachers’ union have agreed on a contract for this school year. The district had declared the talks at an impasse and moved to bring in a special magistrate, but as of Tuesday afternoon, the parties came to an agreement.
Most of the educators will get a raise of just over 3 percent. It will go into effect by the end of March and will be retroactive to the beginning of the school year, August 1st. Leon Classroom Teachers President Scott Mazur says the raise is structured to reward the more experienced teachers for their years.
“The beginning teachers are not included in that because so much money was put into beginning teachers’ salaries," he said, "and we’ve got to deal with compression that’s taking place. We have so many people within their first 17 years of teaching that are making almost similar money. And so, this is intended to try to help continue to spread people out.”
Mazur is especially excited that the contract also includes free childcare next year for Leon County instructional staff.
“Think about it," he said. "You know your kids are in a safe place. You don’t have to pay the extra money for the child care. And you can focus on the students in your classroom. It’s a win-win across the board.”
The contract also includes a leave buyback plan, and paid parental leave.
