NewsCovering Kentucky

Actions

School board maximizes salary increase for FCPS employees

Fayette County Board of Education.PNG
Posted at 12:52 PM, Jun 14, 2022
and last updated 2022-06-14 12:52:04-04

LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Fayette County Board of Education voted Monday night to approve a 2022-23 salary schedule that ensures every contracted FCPS employee will make more money next year than this past year.

Employees will also receive a pay increase of at least 3% on top of any step increases for experience and education they are eligible to receive. Hourly employees will earn more than $15.55 an hour.

Under current revenue calculations, FCPS is projected to receive $3.3 million in additional SEEK dollars for salary raises.

According to FCPS, Fayette County Board of Education has committed nearly eight times to investing these additional funds into the staff who make the work for students and families possible.

This includes:

  • An additional $12 million for hourly employees, which includes $1.1 million for the “step” increases for years of service.
  • An additional $12.3 million for salaried employees, which includes $3.9 million for the “step” increases for education and experience.
  • An additional $2 million for two optional work days that allow teachers to receive additional pay for some of the time they spend getting their classrooms ready before the school year begins.

These salary increases are in addition to the 2% salary increase all contracted FCPS employees received in this year’s salary schedule.

The new salary schedules also reflect the changes recommended as part of the classified compensation study, such as reducing the number of pay grades from 30 to 20, and reclassifying positions to ensure pay rates are in line with competitive market values.

“We scrutinized the budget to maximize the salary increases for our employees,” said Fayette County Board of Education Chair Tyler Murphy. “In reality though, the incredible people who work in our schools every day are worth more than we can ever pay them.”

“In a world where salaries reflected the importance of the work you do, school employees would have the multimillion-dollar contracts currently enjoyed by professional athletes and movie stars,” said FCPS Superintendent Demetrus Liggins.