Oak Ridge educators are asking for a 4% pay raise in the next school year, which would bring a beginning teachers' salary up to $52,000 a year.
Leaders with the Oak Ridge Education Association made the request to the Oak Ridge Board of Education and school system administration at Monday night's monthly board meeting at the School Administration Building. School administrators asked for a 2.5% to 3% increase.
The educators presented their requests to the board members ahead of their work on the upcoming school year's budget preparation. The first presentation of the fiscal year 2025 budget proposal will be April 22 with first reading on May 6, according to Molly Gallagher Smith, the school system's communications specialist.
In addition to the 4% pay increase for teachers, OREA's Michael Carvella and Peter Blair also asked for "step" raises for all educators based upon their years of service and education degree level; a greater contribution by the school system to medical insurance; and increasing the paid bereavement days from by three days for a maximum of five days.
"Our budget (this current fiscal year) for teachers included a 'step' for years of service, a 4% increase, and updating our teacher salary schedule to ensure a teacher minimum pay of $50,000. This equated to a minimum increase of 4%, but many teachers saw more. The request by OREA would bring our beginning teacher salary to $52,000," schools Finance Director Jenifer Van Dyke stated in an emailed response to The Oak Ridger's questions.
She said administrators also received 4% pay raises this school year.
State leaders recently set a goal to make the starting teacher salary $50,000 a year by 2026, the USA TODAY Network-Tennessee reported.
The Oak Ridger's News Editor Donna Smith covers Oak Ridge area news. Email her at dsmith@oakridger.com and follow her on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, @ridgernewsed.
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