Manatee School District, teachers union looking into possible pay discrepancy

MANATEE -- A possible discrepancy in how teachers are being paid is being investigated by the Manatee County School District and the local teachers union.

A Lee Middle School civics teacher approached the Manatee County School Board on March 8, and questioned why another teacher -- who she said had the same number of degrees and the same amount of experience -- is being paid more than she is.

"I feel it's kind of a disservice to the teachers that are already working in this district," Molly Westbrook, a civics teacher, said to the board.

That public statement helped launch an investigation, Manatee Education Association President Pat Barber said Thursday. Barber could not speak to the specifics of Westbrook's case, but said they are looking into it.

The investigation is in its early stages and Barber said it would be too early to say if there is a discrepancy and what may have caused a discrepancy, if it exists.

It's also too early in the investigation to say how many teachers may be affected, she said.

"We're in the process of trying to figure out what the whole picture looks like," Barber said.

Teachers with the same de

gree and experience should be paid the same amount, Barber said. Sometimes, there are glitches and teachers come to Barber and say they feel they aren't being paid properly. Those cases are investigated and corrected, if necessary.

With Westbrook's public statement, Barber said it is still too early to tell what is really going on.

"It's only fair to say that a problem has been raised and it's being investigated. That's all that can be said at this point," she said. "If the problem is true, it might be one, it might be five, it might not be hundreds. We don't even know that yet."

The district operates under two different pay schedules: a grandfathered pay schedule employees working in the district before July 1, 2011, can opt to stay on; and a performance pay schedule mandated by the state.

A key component of the performance pay schedule is an increase for teachers who score well in evaluations. The district has yet to implement that component.

Teachers working in the district before July 1, 2011, had the option to move over to the performance pay schedule, which also stipulates teachers must be on an annual contract, or they could choose to potentially miss out on that performance funding in favor of staying on a continuing contract, commonly called tenure.

Those hired after July 1, 2011, were not given the option, and are placed on the performance pay schedule.

Regardless, Barber said, the schedules are identical, and until the performance pay piece goes into effect, teachers with the same experience and degree status on the different schedules should make the same salary.

In addition to base salaries, which are based on degrees and years of experiences, school personnel can receive stipends and supplements from the school district for taking on additional responsibilities such as coaching or being team leaders in the school.

Meghin Delaney, education reporter, can be reached at 841-745-7081. Follow her on Twitter @MeghinDelaney.

This story was originally published March 24, 2016 at 11:17 PM with the headline "Manatee School District, teachers union looking into possible pay discrepancy ."