Union Says Strongsville Teachers' Salaries Aren't Out of Line

The Strongsville Education Association says salaries for teachers here are in line with those in other Cuyahoga County districts rated "excellent with distinction" by the state.

The SEA, which represents 383 teachers and other employees who have been on strike since March 4, created a chart that shows starting and average salaries of 10 nearby school districts with the highest rating on state report cards.

“The time has come to debunk the myth that Strongsville teachers are overpaid, when in fact the truth may be just the opposite," SEA President Tracy Linscott said in a news release. 

The SEA acknowledges, though, that the starting and average salaries on the chart (attached as a PDF) don't take into account the 10.3 percent retirement contribution the school district picks up -- an amount most teachers in Ohio pay themselves.

Adding it in brings the average teacher salary in Strongsville from $66,558 to $73,746. Likewise, starting salary goes from $34,779  to $38,361.

Even so, the SEA argues, Strongsville's base salary is still lower than all but two of the other nine districts, and its average salary is in the middle of the pack.

But the chart also reflects current pay rates -- not the ones the SEA is seeking in its new contract. 

While the School Board wants to continue a freeze on step and column increases, the SEA wants the raises restored, with an extra jump in step levels to make up for pay teachers missed out on in the last contract when the increases were frozen.

For example, a teacher with a master's degree now at Step 12 earns $66,558 a year -- close to the district average, according to a chart in the SEA's proposal. That teacher would jump to step 14, or $68,912, if the union's contract were approved.

Adding in the retirement pick-up would take the salary to more than $76,000 -- or fourth-highest in the area.

And school officials say the issue is not how much other districts pay -- it's whether Strongsville can afford to pay teachers more.

School Board President David Frazee has said the union's contract request would put Strongsville's budget about $2 million in the red.

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For other stories on the teachers' strike, click here.

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