Minneapolis teachers voting on bigger raises, lower special-ed workloads in contract

Minneapolis educators are voting this week on a pair of union contracts that, in the case of teachers, would provide the highest pay increases they’ve seen in 25 years.

The salary hikes — 4% this year and 5% in 2024-25 — would be in addition to automatic increases based on levels of education and experience and are part of a deal described as historic by district and union leaders such as Greta Callahan, president of the teacher chapter of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers and a candidate for the school board.

Still to be determined, however, is the agreement’s impact on a 2024-25 school district budget that already is projected to show a $110 million deficit. Add it to other contracts that have yet to be settled, and the deficit most likely will grow, Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams said.

The deal came together just ahead of a scheduled strike authorization vote in late April and left the district and union leaders expressing optimism about their ability to continue working together.

“We’re one step closer to a reality where we can make Minneapolis Public Schools a destination district for the families that we serve,” union Vice President Marcia Howard said. “It’s a new era in Minneapolis.”

If ratified by teachers in voting that extends through Friday, the agreement would head to the school board for its approval. The district has said the deal fell within board-approved budget parameters.

Statewide, teachers are seeing their biggest increases in 20 years, Education Minnesota has said. As of May 1, the average salary increases winning local approval were 4.3% this year and 3.5% in 2024-25.

St. Paul teachers secured a two-year deal in March calling for 4% raises in 2024-25, plus a fixed increase of $3,500 retroactive to Jan. 1 of this year.

In Minneapolis, this year’s 4% increases would be retroactive to July 1, 2023.

The pay increases come after last year’s historic $2.2 billion state investment in schools — an infusion of aid that state and local union leaders have successfully pointed to as a potential funding source for the types of salary hikes they say they sacrificed in previous bargaining cycles.

But the handsome packages also are leaving some districts facing even more painful budget cuts as $1.3 billion in federal COVID relief funds are set to expire in September.

Callahan said the Minneapolis contract also provides some workload relief for special education teachers, primarily at the elementary level, and includes changes within the salary schedule that eliminate some steps in which teachers were not getting automatic increases tied to years of experience.

This year, annual pay in Minneapolis will range from about $49,000 for a starting teacher with a bachelor’s degree to about $107,000 for the district’s most experienced and highly educated instructors. Next year, that salary range would be $54,000 to $112,000, the tentative agreement states.

The school calendar also will be shortened, something Callahan said “families want — and makes a lot of sense for pretty much everyone.”

“I don’t think anyone’s feeling like a loser” in this deal, she said at a recent news conference. “We’re feeling like we won, and the students are going to win from this contract, so we’re really proud of it.”

Board Chair Collin Beachy said the agreement represented a “pretty historic day” for the district, and students were witness to “the power of collaboration, communication and unity.”

This week, the district’s support staffers also are voting on a new agreement reached a day after the educational support professionals (ESP) chapter of the teachers union had filed an intent to strike.

Catina Taylor, union chapter president, said in a statement then that wages were being raised and a compensation system created that values experience in the district. The agreement should help attract more educators to the city’s schools, she said.

Sayles-Adams said she looked forward to a continued partnership with the ESP chapter, as well. The ESPs also vote through Friday.