School District of Greenfield
PROFESSIONAL EDUCATOR COMPENSATION:
LISTENING AND LEARNING
FALL 2013
What is compensation?
 Salary (wages) is an element of the compensation
system. Other elements include:
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Health insurance
Life insurance
Dental insurance
Wisconsin Retirement System
Post-employment benefits
For most teachers, salary will account for 50-75% of the total
compensation package.
Example: for a teacher with a salary of $50,000, the salary
accounts for 70% of the total compensation
How was salary determined?
 Salary for teachers was determined by a system of
lanes and steps
 Teachers advanced on the scale based on years of
service and educational lane advancement
How was salary determined?
 Since 1970s, salaries for teachers were formally
bargained per state law
 Under former state law, increases to teacher
compensation needed to reach the Qualified
Economic Offer (QEO) which was set at 3.8%
 The QEO did not include advancement on the
lanes/step system
 So, aggregate teacher compensation often rose
higher than 3.8% annually when lane/steps were
considered, as well as benefit cost increases
Benefits and challenges of the lane/step model
 Benefits:
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Predictable;
Rewarded longevity;
Provided clear pathways to higher earnings.
 Challenges:
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Unsustainable increases relative to per pupil allowances and
increased costs in other areas (e.g., health insurance, utilities)
Compensation-related costs were increasing at a rate of 5-10%
annually while revenue authority growth was only 2%
Compensation was “back-loaded” towards those in the last few years
of employment and beyond
Often there was a 100% variance between the lowest and highest
paid teacher (e.g., teacher at $70,ooo and $35,000)
Where are we now?
 Since 2011, most Wisconsin school districts have
frozen salary scales and provided across-the-board
(ATB) increases in a certain amount or percentage
 Advancement on the lane/step system has largely
ceased
 Stipends have been offered to those who were
enrolled in a graduate program
What are we going to do about salaries?
 What’s going on elsewhere…
 Lane & step model is being phased out
 Big salary jumps are unlikely to occur (i.e., BA to MA to MA
+30) based on educational attainment
 Most districts are going to a tiered approach
Moving from one tier to a higher tier is largely based on
experience/evaluation cycle
 Each tier has a higher base salary
 Some districts are looking at merit pay, or Pay-for-Performance
systems
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What is the purpose of compensation?
 A good compensation plan will:
 Attract teachers to Greenfield
 Retain teachers in Greenfield
 Be fair, transparent and easily understood
 Make compensation a non-topic
 Reward desired behaviors aligned with the District’s culture &
mission
What is the purpose of compensation?
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What does “reward desired behaviors aligned with the
District’s culture & mission” mean?
 Easily put, it is professional development:
 of value to the district,
 to meet specific needs of the district,
 that helps individuals improve their performance to
increase student achievement, and,
 will not be the same for all teachers.
What is the purpose of compensation?
 Compensation is a part of the attraction and retention of
staff
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To the extent that compensation results in the attraction/retention of
staff, what should be done?
What else can be offered to employees?
Some differentiation in compensation may be necessary to attract
teachers to hard-to-fill certifications;
Some differentiation may be needed to attract other skill sets such as
bilingual or multiple certification teachers;
Minimize damage to teacher morale resulting from salary
differentiation.
What is the purpose of compensation?
 Are teachers (are you) motivated by increased
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compensation?
Is higher compensation an adequate reward?
What else attracts/retains/motivates people?
What behaviors do we need/want to reward?
Does rewarding advanced educational degrees serve the
District’s interests?
Should student performance affect teacher compensation?
Your thoughts and ideas