During these times of economic crisis, when our state is scrambling to balance the generation of revenue against the spending required to maintain services needed for our citizens, it is not uncommon for the blame game to begin. Many rumors and accusations have been launched over the past few months. Fingers are being pointed from our house to the White House, from Washington to Lansing, from the class room to the board room. Education is the latest target in the never ending game to balance the budget.

Throughout my nine year tenure on the Board of Education, the Dearborn School District has evaluated every area available in an effort to become more efficient. This is a process that continues daily. Utilizing the services of Johnson Controls, we managed to save millions of dollars in utilities by becoming more energy conscious. We have sought grants at all levels of education, elongated maintenance schedules to limit the amount of general funds spent on building upkeep and sought the services of Plante and Moran to assess our department spending compared to other districts of similar size. These are just a few examples of efforts that have been made over the years to avoid staff layoffs and program elimination.

We have now reached a point where the cuts imposed by the state legislature are so deep that we cannot simply “cut back.” In order to weather this latest storm and the many more that are sure to follow, the district needs to negotiate systemic changes with our bargaining units. In the past, we were fortunate to have a healthy revenue stream that allowed us the flexibility to offer generous salary and benefits packages to all of our employees while maintaining programs which offered a well rounded education for our students. Like many families in Dearborn, our income has been cut and we must adjust to these unwelcome changes.

Members of our largest bargaining union, the Dearborn Federation of Teachers, have been very vocal in the community, at our Board meetings and in their classrooms. The message they are sending is that the Board is laying off teachers in high numbers, which will negatively affect the education of our students and reduce the number of classes available. What is not being said is that the layoffs are only necessary because the union refuses to make contract concessions at a time when everyone who still has a job has had to make concessions. If the teachers accept some reductions, the layoffs can be avoided. Because layoffs are determined by seniority, the teachers most involved in the union negotiations are not in jeopardy of losing their jobs. However, they are the ones who will be affected by salary cuts, because after 15 years of service they have reached the top of the salary schedule. Unfortunately, they have decided to wage a PR campaign against the district instead of trying to find a way to save their colleagues’ jobs.

The controversy is about how much of the budget shortfall the teachers and other employee groups should bear. The district has been very consistent when negotiating; the state has cut our foundation allowance per pupil and we are asking all of our employees to take reductions in their total compensation proportional to the amount we’ve lost in funding. Current discussions include salary reductions of about 6.3% with the understanding that if any funding is restored the percentage will be adjusted.

Salaries are increased year to year by more than just the standard raise; depending on where a teacher lands on the salary schedule, he or she can receive a step increase, which is an increase in salary simply for maintaining employment from one year to the next. The salary reductions that are being asked of the employees can be offset by the step increase, which limits the burden on our staff.

For example, under the current contract, a fairly new teacher with a Bachelor’s degree at step 2 of the salary schedule would receive a 7.1% step increase in salary. On the other end of the pay scale are the more tenured teachers. A teacher with around 10 years of service with a Ph.D. at step 11 would receive a 5.5% step increase. After 14 years of service, that same teacher would receive a longevity bonus salary increase of $1,875 (2.1%) along with their 3.7% step increase. There are other ways for our teachers to increase their income. By increasing their level of education, teachers receive an automatic increase in pay on top of the step increase they would normally receive. For example, a teacher who obtains a Master’s degree after about 8 years of service would receive their normal step increase for maintaining employment plus an extra step increase due to their new degree for a total increase of 11%.

In order to maintain financial stability in the long term, we are asking to reduce the maximum step increase from 9.5% to 5% and to increase the number of steps on the schedule from 14 to 20. Basically this means that it could take a new teacher 20 years to reach the maximum salary instead of only 14.

Along with salary cuts, modest healthcare concessions are also part of the deal. Let me be clear, we are not asking our employees to go without healthcare, but rather reducing the choice of plans available without a premium cost to the employees from three plans to two, with the option to buy into the third plan. Currently, the district pays an average of $12,000 per year for each member of the DFT for healthcare. With over 1,250 members in this union, this cost alone accounts for over $15,000,000 in our budget. I am not suggesting that we eliminate healthcare, but like those employed in many other private businesses and corporations, our employees need to start bearing some of the burden. We can no longer afford to offer these benefit packages and still maintain programs for our students.

If all of this seems confusing, you’re not alone. There are many benefits that are embedded in the contracts with our employees that are not classified as raises, but serve the same purpose. Please don’t misunderstand me. I am not suggesting that our teaching staff doesn’t deserve fair compensation. However, the average teacher in Dearborn has a total compensation package of nearly $100,000. Because most of our staff will get step increases prior to any salary reductions, most will not see a dramatic decrease in their paycheck, but rather a decrease from their expectations.

When we analyze the information that is floating around the community, we need to be careful not to let rumors supersede facts. We have all been impacted by the loss of jobs and the downturn in our local and state economy. The Dearborn School District is not asking our employees to work for free, we are simply asking them to come together as one family and to do what it takes to keep teachers in the classroom where they belong.

The writer is vice president of the Dearborn Board of Education. Her opinions are her own and do not necessarily represent the views of the other members of the Board.