AJC.com > Blogs > Get Schooled > Archives > 2005 > January > 06
Thursday, January 6, 2005
What about bus drivers?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Gov. Sonny Perdue is pitching a 2 percent raise for teachers, a move teacher groups decried as not enough but Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox, a Republican who taught in Fayette County, said is “enough for us to show our appreciation.”
Toni Smith, a teacher at Columbia High School, did not complain that the 2 percent was too stingy. But she did want to know whether support personnel such as bus drivers, school secretaries, cafeteria workers and custodians were included in the governor’s proposal.
The answer, according to the governor’s office, is no. The raise applies to “educators”: teachers, principals and assistant principals, a spokeswoman said Thursday.
Pay for the workers Smith is worried about is established at the local school district, the spokeswoman said. Smith thinks a state mandate would help lift salaries, benefits and working conditions for those Smith considers her partners in keeping schools running smoothly. “It’s certainly unfair to marginalize the work they do,” said Smith, who is recovering from an accident and on medical leave. “We’re part of a team. They are very much on the front lines, too.”
Teacher pay in Georgia averages $45,000 to $46,000 a year, the highest in the Southeast. For bus drivers, the starting pay in DeKalb County is about $14,000 a year for drivers who work about five hours a day.
Permalink | |
