LYNNWOOD, Wash. (AP) — Teachers in Edmonds public schools are in line for a pay hike this fall under an agreement set for approval by the Lynnwood-based district’s Board of Directors on Tuesday.
The one-year deal calls for a wage hike of 2% for certificated teachers, plus a $1,250 increase for each step in their salary schedule, the Everett Herald reported.
With the changes, a first-year instructor with a bachelor’s degree will earn a starting salary of $68,965 — the highest in the state. The current starting pay is $66,184.
At the top end, a certificated teacher with 14 years of experience, a master’s degree and 90 units of additional education will make $124,658, up from $120,646.
Salary increases are one provision in a nine-page memorandum of understanding between the school district and the Edmonds Education Association that will extend the existing collective bargaining agreement for one year.
This was supposed to be the year the association and district hammered out a new three-year contract. With many uncertainties surrounding a fall reopening amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, teachers opted to seek a shorter-term arrangement.
A year ago, with schools closed and coronavirus infections surging, the union took the same tact. Its last three-year deal expired in August 2020.