VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Volusia County teachers protested outside of a school board meeting for higher pay. Eyewitness News first reported last month that the district and teacher’s union failed to reach an agreement after five bargaining sessions.
Volusia United Educators said everyone from principals to custodians were given 2% raises, but teachers were only offered 1.5%.
The union claims the lack of competitive salaries has caused a retention problem in the district.
President Elizabeth Albert said teachers in Volusia County are the second lowest paid in central Florida. The average salary is just over $50,000. And while they have gotten raises over the years, Albert said teachers with 30 years experience are only making a couple thousand more than brand new teachers.
“We have anywhere between 200-300 instructional folks who any given year separate from Volusia County Schools,” said Albert.
The latest update on the issue on the district’s website said:
“The district’s bargaining team is committed to finding a solution that is equitable for our employees while also considering what is best for students and what is financially feasible given declining enrollment in Volusia County and across the state of Florida. Despite this and the loss of $20 million in funding over the last two years, the district is still committed to increasing compensation for our instructional staff.”
The school board would not comment on the issue yet because they’ll eventually have to vote on what happens next.
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