Employees of the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation are set to see a raise after the school board voted Wednesday night to approve a collective bargaining agreement between the school corporation and the Columbus Educators Association. Superintendent Dr. Jim Roberts says that a lot of work went in to hammering out this agreement.
Roberts says that this agreement will help to recruit and retain quality employees. On average, employees will see a pay raise of 3.2 percent for this school year and a 2.29 percent increase for the 2018-2019 school year. In addition, starting teacher salaries will increase from $36,720 to $38,750. Roberts says that translates to a $250,000 increase in earnings over a 35-year career.
One highlight is that healthcare premiums are only increasing two-percent over last year.
Roberts added that while raises won’t be uniform for this school year, they will be for the 2018-2019 school year. The CEA voted to approve the proposal with more than 90 percent membership support.