Nov 27 — Carlee and Josh Sluder are in their 11th year as middle school teachers at Vigo County School Corp., and both are dedicated to their students and their profession.

“I don’t want to do anything else,” Carlee Sluder said. “My heart is in teaching.”

Josh echoes his comments. “I love what I do,” he said. That’s all I’ve wanted to do since I was in college. “

But after years of dedicated service, their pay isn’t what it should be, they say. They are part of a group of VCSC teachers who began their careers after the state in 2011 removed a salary scale that allowed automatic salary increases based on years of experience.

As a result, the Sluders say they’ve lost ground over the years, especially in years when the district was only able to pay a one-time allowance due to budget constraints. And while the new two-year teaching contract makes significant inroads – including a new pay scale and a two-year $ 4,000 pay rise – the disparity has not been corrected.

The Sluders describe this group of teachers as the “lost generation” and they speak out in hopes of making a difference.

They started this year with a base salary of around $ 42,000. While the contract will take them to $ 44,000 this year and $ 46,000 next year, a new teacher next year will earn $ 40,000.

Carlee Sluder recently asked VCSC teachers to participate in an informal and voluntary survey, shared through social media groups that many VCSC teachers are affiliated with. In the survey, teachers were asked about the level of education; years of experience, in total; years of employment for the VCSC; starting salary at VCSC; current salary at VCSC (without taking into account a new contract).

Not all VCSC teachers had access to the survey, and 113 teachers participated [VCSC has more than 1,000 teachers]. However, according to Carlee Sluder, the data from the informal survey “was consistent” and its findings indicated:

The story continues

– Before the new contract, a 10-year-old teacher earned only $ 4,000 more than a first-year teacher, while a 20-year-old teacher earned $ 13,000 more than a 10-year-old teacher, on the base of teachers with a bachelor’s degree.

“On average, then, a 10-year teaching experience is worth $ 400 per year, and a 20-year teaching experience is worth $ 1,300 per year. A teacher who entered VCSC in 2001 is worth $ 900 more. per year that a teacher who entered in 2011, even though both groups have the same level of experience as their younger generation, ”Carlee Sluder wrote in an opinion piece.

“For the lost generation, that hints that their years of experience is not being valued,” she said.

She commends the efforts of the Vigo County Teachers Association for the improvements to the new contract, including the new salary scale. “While this new contract gives everyone an upward momentum, it fails to recognize these pay gaps,” she said.

First-year teachers deserve the best pay they’ll get, “but the lost generation deserves to be paid for what they’ve been deprived of for all those years they’ve stood their ground, hoping for better years to come,” said said Carlee Sluder.

Progress made, more work to do

In response to the concerns raised, VCTA and VCSC provided a joint statement.

State law requires the VCSC to negotiate directly with the Vigo County Teachers Association, it says. This fall, the VCTA and VCSC worked together to negotiate a contract that was ratified by a vote of 528-54.

“Much of the work of this negotiating session focused on a state mandate to increase the salaries of beginning teachers to $ 40,000 by the start of next school year,” he said. declared. In addition, “we have also been successful in bringing a salary scale back to our district so that teachers can consider how their careers can evolve.”

The joint statement concluded, “The district continues to discuss ways to increase revenue, which will provide more opportunities for discussion in future bargaining sessions.

Heidi McDonald, president of the VCTA, made a separate statement on behalf of the teachers’ union.

The VCTA and the school district “spent countless hours in informal negotiations working out a salary schedule for our contract this year. For the VCTA, this was a major goal, as our old schedule had been frozen and eventually removed. of our contracts due to Indiana Education Employment Relations Board compliance issues [IEERB],” she wrote.

The IEERB has developed rules and guidelines to guide school employees and employers through the labor relations process, according to its website.

The McDonald’s statement continued: “The VCTA was fortunate that the VCSC was willing to spend the time necessary to develop a salary schedule that would benefit our teachers and comply with state regulations on our contracts. We were fortunate not only to bring the salary grid back, but to work to provide raises for our teachers over the next two years of this contract. Currently our teachers will receive a total of $ 4,000 over the next two years. , the majority of which will be base salary increases.

“By working in conjunction with the VCSC, we were also able to increase the starting salary for new teachers to $ 40,000 by the next school year, in line with the state’s mandate and in the hope of attracting more people towards the profession in the future. Our current and prospective teachers can now view the salary scale and see where they stand and where they can be as they continue to devote their time to the teaching profession.

McDonald concluded, “While we at VCTA always know there is still work to be done, we see this as a huge step in the right direction. The work we have done with the company has enabled us to deliver salary increases over the next two years in a manner that is fair to all teachers at all levels of our business, and to continue to do so as we let’s negotiate moves in the future. “

Stacy Hughes, executive director of the IEERB, said the disparity problem exists in school districts across the state. “We have several who are trying to solve this problem,” she said. The IEERB “recognizes that companies and unions find it difficult to pay teachers who are caught in the middle.”

State rules include provisions that can be used to help address the issue of wage inequality, based on a factor described as “the academic needs of students,” she said.

“We have quite a few districts that are trying to address this particular problem,” said Hughes. “It’s great to see because everyone wants to keep great teachers in the classroom. “

Kim Fidler, an Indiana State Teachers Association representative who works with VCTA in negotiating teacher contracts, agrees that there is a pay gap for teachers of different experience levels. She attributes much of the problem to a Republican-dominated legislature that has passed laws detrimental to teachers and public education.

“I studied the laws and found ways to legally negotiate measures and ways to reward teachers for additional training and credentials,” says Fidler. “Unfortunately, after a decade of damaging laws, I cannot solve problems overnight. “

Some of the factors contributing to compensation problems include lack of state funding; teacher evaluation based on student test results; and restrictions on salaries that can be awarded for years of experience and additional education and degrees, she said.

The “student academic needs” factor cited by Hughes of the IEERB was used in developing the salary scale, Fidler said.

Carlee Sluder understands that public funding is an issue and that educators and those who support public education should vote for pro-education candidates. The Sluders believe the state is “absolutely the biggest contributor” to the pay equity dilemma.

But in the meantime, the Vigo County School Corp. “Must find a way to do good for its employees,” she said.

She believes that more can be done and would like to see the district’s plans to address it. “I hope the VCSC administration and school board will keep these areas of improvement in mind for future decision making,” she said.

Sue Loughlin can be reached at 812-231-4235 or [email protected] Follow Sue on Twitter @TribStarSue.