Teachers may give back part of raise in new contract

By Johanna Seltz, Town Correspondent

In an increasingly common scenario among cash-strapped communities in Massachusetts, Milton teachers have been asked to give back a portion of the pay hike they negotiated for this school year.

If the teachers agree to take a 2.5 percent wage increase this year -- instead of the scheduled 3.5 percent -- it would save the school system, and cost the teachers, an estimated $200,000, according to school officials.

The Milton Education Association voted late last week on the change as part of a new three-year contract that also would increase salaries by 2 percent next school year, and 2.25 percent the following one.

Results of the vote are expected to be announced at tonight’s School Committee meeting. The board is scheduled to vote tonight on the contract as well, officials said.

The administration and union started renegotiating the contract in the spring. While the annual pay raise would be reduced for this year, automatic “step and lane” pay increases for longevity and advanced degrees would remain, officials said.

If Milton’s teachers decide to sacrifice some cash, they’ll join the ranks of other unions in the state that have made concessions to improve their communities’ financial situation.

Brockton and Easton teachers, for example, agreed to postpone raises this year to reduce the number of teacher layoffs in their school systems. Far more unions, however, have rejected calls to save money by giving up benefits or pay, according to a survey of area communities.

Milton’s teachers union, which has about 300 members, voted earlier this year not to participate in the Race to the Top competition for federal education money. Union members objected in principle to the program’s linking teachers’ pay to their students’ educational progress as measured by standardized tests.

Johanna Seltz can be reached at seelenfam@verizon.net.