LEE COUNTY, Fla. — After 11 meetings between the Teachers Association of Lee County and the Lee County School Board. 93% of teachers in Lee County voted in favor of the new pay contracts.
The following plan was adopted:
0 years: 3.65% increase
1-4 years: 5.5% increase
5-9 years: 8.5% increase
10-14 years: 9.5% increase
15-19 years: 10.5% increase
20 years or more: 11.5% increase
The starting salary is now $50,000.
"Everyone in the TALC bargaining unit, all of the folks we represent, whether they’re a member of the union or not have the right to vote on the changes," TALC Director, Dr. Kerr Fazzone said.
Teachers voted on the district's latest offer in October. The majority approved and the plan is final this week.
Fazzone says TALC wanted to push the district into paying more. He believes it led to the district doubling it's original offer from about $16 million to $32.8 million dollars, addressing burnout and rewarding dedicated teachers more.
“I would like for people to see their collective power helped bring this agreement about, when we started the dollar figures that we were negotiating were much less than where we ended up," he said.
These increases will be reflected for teachers by December 15.
