The Washoe County School District board of trustees has approved an agreement with the Washoe Education Association that will add a differential payment of $2,500 for returning educators and $1,500 for new educators hired for the 2022-23 school year.
“The District deeply appreciates the outstanding contributions of our educators in response to the extraordinary impacts of the COVID pandemic, and we are aware of the impacts on educator morale and retention,” said Emily Ellison, chief human resources officer for WCSD. “We are also sensitive to the labor market and economic pressures that our employees are facing, and we hope this will provide some much-needed financial resources for them.”
A portion of the increases — $1,500 of the $2,500 — will be paid from elementary and secondary school emergency relief funds. The remaining $1,000 will be paid from the school district’s general fund for an estimated total of $6.4 million from the emergency fund and $4.3 million from the general fund.
WEA’s incoming president praised the pay raises but said more work needs to be done.
“This additional financial support came after many weeks of meetings and tough negotiating,” said incoming WEA President Calen Evans. “I understand that an additional $2,500 is less than what deserve, but it’s a step in the right direction, and we had to push hard to make this happen. We intend to build on this and won’t stop until all educators in our district are being paid a competitive wage.”
