CMS approves bonuses for full-time and part-time employees to curb staffing shortage
Full- and part-time employees in Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools will get bonuses this month as part of an employee retention incentive approved Wednesday.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education approved the proposal that gives full-time employees a $2,500 bonus and part-time employees $1,250. The incentives, part of an effort to recruit and keep employees, were approved at a special meeting.
School officials said the bonuses are for all employees, including teachers, maintenance and cafeteria workers.
Half of the bonuses will be paid on Dec. 22, and the second half will be paid in September 2022.
Christine Pejot, chief human resources officer, has said that CMS has experienced increased levels of attrition and challenges with recruiting new employees since the beginning of the 2020-21 school year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Observer reported.
The bonuses are expected to cost the district about $48 million, with officials using American Rescue Plan funding.
School board member Jennifer De La Jara said the board had requested the bonuses several weeks ago and have been waiting on approval from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, which was granted Tuesday.
“The past two years have been very difficult,” Superintendent Earnest Winston said Wednesday. “We have faced never-before-seen challenges. Our staff has stepped up and persevered.”
Winston said he has heard from many CMS employees that they are physically and mentally exhausted.
“Through it all, they remain committed to our students,” he said. “We want to demonstrate a gesture of goodwill (and) to be able to say, ‘thank you.’ We hear you, and we understand the challenges you face.”
Keeping staff
In CMS, 500 teachers have resigned since August, with an additional 91 set to resign this month. In the fall, district officials said there were 83 unfilled teacher positions.
At a rally in October, before a board of education meeting, about 20 employees rallied in front of the Government Center to “shed light on the current conditions in CMS schools. Staffing shortages are forcing existing employees to have to take on additional workloads.
“We see how hard you’re working,” board chair Elyse Dashew said. “I don’t think any dollar amount will ever be enough to show our appreciation.”
Since the school year began, the district has announced programs, and the school board has approved pay raises for certain groups to attract more workers.
The district’s Human Resources department expanded the Guest Teacher Program and added a new instructional substitute performance bonus. CMS also created a higher pay rate for certified Guest Teachers at $180 per day.
Through June, daily substitutes now earn a bonus for completing a minimum number of assignments each month. Daily substitutes who work between five and nine assignments each month will receive a $200 bonus, and those who work 10 or more assignments each month will receive a $500 bonus.
CMS also raised the starting wage for bus drivers from $15.75 an hour to $17.75 an hour to help the district become more competitive.
Pejot told board members Wednesday that the incentive “demonstrates our commitment to employees.” She said it will improve morale, decrease attrition and encourage employees to stay with CMS.
This story was originally published December 8, 2021 at 9:00 AM.
