FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wed., Nov. 17, 2004

CONTACT: John Schuster Miami-Dade County Public Schools 305-995-1126

SCHOOL BOARD APPROVES PLAN TO INCREASE TEACHER SALARIES

MIAMI &endash;Public school teachers across Miami-Dade County will receive salary increases under an agreement with United Teachers of Dade that was approved by the School Board Wednesday. The plan also provides additional pay for teachers in the district's lowest performing schools.

The agreement provides for teachers to move up one step on the district's 22-step salary schedule. Paraprofessionals and other employees represented by the union also will get a step increase on their salary schedules.

Pay increases for teachers and other 10-month employees will be retroactive to the start of the school year. Full-year employees will be paid back to the start of the district's fiscal year, July 1.

The agreement also covers the instructional program for 39 chronically low performing schools recently taken over by Superintendent Rudolph F. "Rudy" Crew and dubbed the "School Improvement Zone."

Teachers in the Zone schools will work an additional hour each day and 10 more days each school year, and will be required to complete 56 hours of professional development. As a result, teachers in the Zone will be paid 20 percent more than teachers outside of those schools.

As part of budget deliberations in September, Dr. Crew identified and the School Board approved $44 million to be set aside as a collective-bargaining reserve. The Superintendent has pledged to include such a reserve earmarked for compensation in each year's budget planning

In addition to salary increases, the agreement calls for employees to be spared any health insurance increases in 2005 and provides for lower deductibles in some health plans.

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04-LJG/074/DF

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