The debate over different cost-of-living increases between certified and classified staff at the Maricopa Unified School District caused public concern Wednesday night.

Five people, many of them MUSD employees, took to the podium at the district’s governing board meeting to voice their dismay over the direction of the board’s conversation at its previous meeting June 14. The discussion argued raising teacher’s salary to 3 percent while raising classified employee pay by just 2 percent.

One speaker was Karen Honeycutt, who works in the business department for the district.

“It is my hope you will consider the wellbeing of all Maricopa Unified School District Employees, and think of us collectively, rather than as a segregated group,” Honeycutt said.

Pamela Brown is a classified employee who also works in the business department.

“I believe there are other ways to handle this so you are not creating a division of employees and the perception that one group is more important in value than another group,” Brown said.

In meetings prior, the board had agreed to keep all employees at a 3 percent pay increase across the board.

The inquiry into different salary figures two weeks ago was prompted by board member Torri Anderson, and initially supported by AnnaMarie Knorr, who said teachers could be attracted to the district if their pay increase was slated slightly higher than other positions.

Attracting and keeping qualified teachers at the district is something all board members said has been difficult for MUSD, albeit most maintained a preference for an equal pay-raise for all employees. The increase originally proposed would cost the district $817,500.

After the call to the public concluded Wednesday, MUSD Superintendent Steve Chestnut provided three salary options to the board. Anderson was not present during the meeting due to a family emergency.

Option A:
Classified Employee: 2 percent increase
Certified Employees (including administrators): 3 percent increase

Option B:
Classified Employees: 2 percent increase
Certified Employees (excluding administrators): 3 percent increase

Option C:
Classified Employees: 2 percent increase
ADE Certified Teachers (excluding administrators): 3 percent increase

After hearing the options, board members agreed to keep a 3 percent increase in MUSD staff cost-of-living adjustment.

“We would send a really bad message if we didn’t raise it 3 percent across the board, and I would never want to do that,” MUSD Board President Patti Coutré said.

Coutré said Chestnut will soon compare classified employee salary with those across other districts. The data will then be shared with the board to measure whether classified employees are being paid competitively enough.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR