Nashville support staff say the issue of pay has never been more urgent. Paraprofessionals, cafeteria workers and other employees who testified at Tuesday’s school board meeting say they’re burnt out from asking routinely for an adequate raise.
“Pay me what I deserve. Pay me what I’ve earned,” says Honey Hereth, a paraprofessional from Tulip Grove Elementary School. “I’m not asking for a handout.”
Hereth says it’s not just her. She says cafeteria workers and bus drivers are stretched just as thin, and she’s worried that will ultimately impact students and their education.
More: Metro School employees petition for better work conditions amid widespread burnout
Other Middle Tennessee school districts are also facing a staffing shortage. But some, including Rutherford and Clarksville-Montgomery County schools, plan to dip into their pandemic funds to keep employees from leaving.
Rutherford County Schools recently announced it will give a retention bonus up to $1,000 for employees, out of acknowledgement that employees have had to shoulder additional duties in response to the pandemic.
The Clarksville-Montgomery County School System is also planning to offer bonuses, though the district is waiting for budget approval. A spokesperson for CMCSS says the district plans to spend over $3 million on retention bonuses, as well as an additional $6 million toward hazard pay for nurses and medical staff, attendance incentives for instructional and student-support positions and one-time market adjustments for bus drivers, custodians and child nutrition staff.
Sean Braisted, a spokesperson for Metro Nashville Public Schools, says the district is using its COVID relief funds toward retention and recruitment, though not necessarily to provide bonuses. He adds that the school system provided $1,000 bonuses to all its staff last school year. Braisted says the district is also planning to review pay for support staff.
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