Manatee County School District Workers Approve Pay Raises Retroactive To July 1

MANATEE COUNTY, FL — Manatee County public school employees have approved a retroactive pay raise for the current 2021-22 school year.

Members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) ratified an agreement with the School District of Manatee County for base salary increases, the district said in a news release.

The salary increases will be retroactive to July 1. The AFSCME union includes transportation, food service, custodial, maintenance and other employees within the district’s operations division.

The trade union and the school district reached a tentative agreement in late December. This agreement was ratified by AFSCME members Saturday. The school board will vote on the approval of this ratified agreement at its Feb. 8 meeting.

The district said that highlights of the agreement include “positive efforts made to bring up lower levels of the salary scale to help with filling needed vacancies while increasing wages.”

The agreement also calls for an increase to the uniform and shoe allowance, and a $1,000 retention bonus for workers who have been employed by the district since Jan. 1.

The total cost estimate of the AFSCME package is $2,211,728 from three different funding sources, the district said.

“I want to thank and congratulate everyone involved in reaching and ratifying this agreement,” Superintendent Cynthia Saunders said. “Improving employee compensation for AFSCME employees will help us attract and retain individuals who are critical to the mission and to the success of serving the needs of our students and families.”

Local AFSCME President Deanna Howell added, “I think overall we have a great contract and everyone from the administration to the employees demonstrated a lot of passion and commitment in coming to this agreement.”