Hey brother, can you spare me a 5% raise?

As of 2010-11, our total payroll costs constituted 82.5% of our general revenue. This figure is actually slightly in excess of $17 million ($22.5 million total expenditures district-wide).

It obviously makes up the vast majority of our budget. Our salaries are competitive within that area, but there are larger, more diverse schools around that pay substantially more.

A 5% pay bump would push total payroll costs to approximately $17,935,861. This would constitute 86.66% of our total expenditures. Our revenue stood at $22,493,037 this same year.

In short, the 5% raise would be sustainable in the short term. Additionally, our fund balance is in excess of $6 million. We actually got hit in FIRST (as mentioned above) for excessive funds. So short of a financial breakdown altogether, we could sustain the increase for a number of years.

Positive attributes of the raise would include increased morale, an increase in the competitiveness of our district in hiring and retaining talented teachers, and an infusion of funds back into our community (as the vast majority of our staff both lives and works in our district).

The only negative I can initially see is the possible eating away of a healthy fund balance should property values significantly decrease (or state funding concerns of course). The other is that the increase might not be sustainable in the long haul if the above conditions come to fruition. There are laws in place that don’t allow for salary reductions across the board. Therefore, the possibility of a RIF or (bare minimum) not replacing departing or probationary staff could be a reality.