Teacher Pay Raises Approved By Manatee County School Board

MANATEE COUNTY, FL — A new contract for Manatee County teachers raises their annual starting pay to $55,177, according to a news release from Manatee County Schools.

The School Board of Manatee County unanimously approved the new contract Wednesday. The salary increase makes the “starting pay for teachers in Manatee County among the highest in the state,” the district said.

The new contract also raises the minimum hourly pay for paraprofessionals and teacher aides to $15 an hour.

The increased salaries are retroactive to July 1.

The newly approved starting salary for teachers has a base pay of $48,586 and a supplement of $6,591 provided through the 1-mill referendum approved by county voters in 2018 and renewed last year, the district said.

The previous starting pay for Manatee County teachers was $52,910 — including a base pay of $47,500 and a referendum supplement of $5,410. Paraprofessionals previously earned $13.34 per hour.

“During this time when all school districts are struggling to recruit and retain the highly qualified teachers and paraprofessionals our students need and deserve, this is a significant step forward for our school district,” Superintendent Cynthia Saunders said. “I want to thank the bargaining teams for the district and the MEA, the School Board for its approval of the new contract, and our community for its continued support of our students and schools.”

Pat Barber, president of the Manatee Education Association, said that “changes in Florida Statute and the way teachers’ salaries are funded make it more difficult to reach agreement, but both teams worked to find the best possible agreement under those conditions. This is the earliest agreement Manatee has reached in many years, and that will help our employees and our community.”

Other updates to the teachers’ contract include:

• Cost of living adjustment of $150 applied to each level of the salary schedules.
• Teachers on the grandfathered schedule receive a four-level increase; those on the performance schedule who were rated highly effective receive a five-level increase and effective receive four-level increase.
• Longevity will maintain current contract language.
• Supplemental/differential pay will increase across the board by 2 percent plus supplements added.
• Credit for prior teaching experience will increase from 10 years to 12 years (the process for receiving credit will be sent out once the contract is ratified.)
• Masters supplement increases $300 to $1,500.
• Sub coverage language: $20 per hour when teachers split classes or cover during their planning time; daily pay not to exceed the daily sub rate of $120.
• Curriculum pay (pay for curriculum and special projects including staff development) increases to $20 per hour and is retroactive to Aug. 2.

Other updates to the paraprofessionals’ contract:

• One step movement on the salary schedule for eligible paraprofessionals (those who worked 99 days or more last year.)
• 2 percent to paraprofessionals at the top of the schedule.
• $1 per hour increase applied to each step of the salary schedule for all paraprofessionals.