Salary increase for administrators/supervisors voted down
A recommended salary increase of two percent for administrators and supervisors from the Rogers City Area Schools was rejected Monday by the Board of Education. A motion made to grant the increase was nixed with five board members voting against it. In superintendent Paul Mancine?s recommendation he said the increase ?corresponds to raises received by the support personnel and the teaching staff.? The raises would have been retroactive to July 1, 2006.
Some board members believe other options regarding ways to save money on health care costs should be explored. Voting for the proposal was president Mike Marx and trustee Alan Smolinski. Smolinski supports the increase because the administrative staff made concessions two years ago when they accepted a $10/$40 drug card.
?WE SAVED a tremendous amount of money, over $100,000,? said Smolinski. Board member Armand Loiselle would like to look at other health care options before giving his approval. ?It is a bigger issue than a two percent salary increase,? said Loiselle. ?We have just come off of heavy negotiations with the teachers.
?There are so many other health care options. It could cost us a whole lot less.? In return, Loiselle would be in favor of a higher wage increase. Mancine told the board that cost of living increases stand at 3.71 percent annually.
?I have two different scenarios come here,? said Mancine. ?It is like Ford and Chrysler, for crying out loud. They dictate to the salary people what is going to happen to them and negotiate with the union people. You?ve got your front line administrators and supervisors diligently working for you. I just hope that the signal sent tonight is not that they are asking for concessions, or anything else more than they are doing.? Mancine understands there are two different arguments. ?It is frustrating because I don?t want to send the wrong message to these six to eight people,? said Mancine.
BOARD MEMBER Scott McLennan is concerned about the additional strain a wage increase could bring to the district. ?We are going to be unfolding a budget shortly that is going to mandate that we make significant cuts,? said McLennan. ?The revenue is not there and I am trying to mitigate some of the drastic cuts that are going to have take place. We are putting the flag up the pole and saying ?folks we need to understand the revenue is not there.? ? McLennan said the board is going to try and keep as many programs going for the students as possible.
Regarding administrators accepting concessions, or a new health care package, Mancine said the group accepted an insurance policy the last time around that saved the district money. ?They were afraid and hesitant to take it,? said Mancine. ?I just hope that these six or seven people understand I will have to take the high road with Armand and say, I assume they will be treated fairly and squarely at the end.? McLennan would like the board to revisit the issue after a new superintendent is decided upon in April.
THE ADMINISTRATIVE staff includes: K-12 principal Deborah Jones; administrative assistant Sarah Brege; business/personnel services coordinator Kathleen Viegelahn; food services supervisor Diane Schultz; coordinator of students/technology/facility usage/student accounting Michael Rivenburgh; and coordinator of students/buildings/grounds/transportation/athletic director Patrick Lamb. The board?s finance committee will discuss the proposed salary increase before possibly bringing it back before the board at a future meeting.