PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philly teachers are steamed because they haven’t yet seen the pay raises negotiated in their new contract. The district blames software issues.
The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers negotiated 3% raises that were supposed to take effect on Sept. 1, under their new contract. However, the union’s 14,000 members did not get that pay bump in their latest paychecks.
“We weren’t able to make that Sept. 26 payroll, but we will meet the Oct. 24 payroll. I can guarantee it,” said Superintendent Tony Watlington.
Watlington, in an interview, pointed out that the school board didn’t ratify the contract until Sept. 11, but he said relatively new payroll software was the reason the raises haven’t shown up.
“We launched a new system around January or so. But long story short, we want to make sure the pay raises are done correctly with minimal or no errors,” he said.
PFT members were also scheduled to get a $1,400 bonus on Nov. 7, but Watlington said the bonuses will now be paid Oct. 10 to make up for the delay in raises.
The district has had an interim HR chief for seven months. Watlington said a national search has yielded a list of semifinalists, but there’s no decision on a permanent HR director yet.
In a statement to members, union President Art Steinberg said PFT expressed its displeasure with the district’s “incompetence” and said the union was “exploring options for further action.”