Union Negotiations 2024

Since March, Fowlerville Community Schools administration has been collaborating with the FEA teacher's union on a collective bargaining agreement. To maintain transparency with our community, we are sharing the proposals and counterproposals exchanged between FCS and FEA. Our district remains committed to bargaining in good faith, striving to achieve our priorities and goals. By providing access to these materials, we aim to keep our community informed and demonstrate our dedication to a fair and equitable resolution that supports our educators, students and overall district success.

Key Financial Details

Steps and Lanes

In all district financial proposals, teachers would advance steps and lanes on the salary schedule for both 2024-25 and 2025-26.

Step	Number of Teachers
1	9
23	7
2.5	1
3	3
3.5	1
4	2
5	2
6	9
7	9
8	3
9	3
10	9
11	8
11.5	1
12	79

Addressing Historical Step Freezes

One of the district’s key goals is to rectify the impact of past step freezes on employees' salary progression. Beginning in its 2nd Financial Proposal, the district proposed to adjust the placement of any association employee not at Step 12 due to step freezes from 2012-2016, ensuring they are placed on their correct step up to Step 12 for the 2024-25 school year. This move aims to correct historical inequities and provide fair compensation to affected teachers, acknowledging the financial sacrifices they made during the freeze periods.

Salary Increases

In its 6th Financial Proposal, the district proposed for 2024-25 a 0.5% increase in the salary schedule from the previous year for steps 1 to 9.5 and 2.5% for steps 10 to 12. Additionally, the proposal includes step increases of $3,000 for Steps 1-7.5, $6,000 for Steps 8-8.5 and $750 for Steps 10-12. The block increases to each step would be applied after the percentage increases to the scale.

For the 2025-26 school year, the district proposes a 0.5% guaranteed increase to the salary schedule with a trigger for additional increases based on revenue gains and/or a reduction in the amount the district pays into the Michigan Public School Employees Retirement System (MPSERS) for association members. This ensures a baseline increase to the salary schedule while providing a mechanism for further adjustments if the district's financial situation changes.

This proposal seeks to offer highly competitive salaries that reflect the district's appreciation for its current educators while helping to recruit and retain teachers.

Fowlerville Proposed Overall Percent Increas 2023-24 to 2025-26 Not Including Step 12 One-Time Payment

Step	2025-26 BA	2025-26 MA	2025-26 MA+
1	8.26%	7.86%	7.77%
1.5	8.06%	7.66%	7.57%
2	7.86%	7.48%	7.39%
2.5	7.68%	7.30%	7.21%
3	7.51%	7.13%	7.04%
3.5	7.34%	6.97%	6.88%
4	7.19%	6.82%	6.74%
4.5	7.04%	6.68%	6.59%
5	6.90%	6.54%	6.46%
5.5	6.76%	6.41%	6.33%
6	6.63%	6.29%	6.21%
6.5	6.5%	6.17%	6.09%
7	6.39%	6.05%	5.98%
7.5	6.27%	6.95%	5.87%
8	11.33%	10.68%	10.53%
8.5	11.12%	10.48%	10.37%
9	2.11%	2.04%	2.02%
9.5	2.09%	2.03%	2.01%
10	4.09%	4.02%	4.01%
10.5	4.06%	4.00%	3.98%
11	4.05%	3.99%	3.97%
11.5	4.02%	3.96%	3.94%
12	4.01%	3.95%	3.93%

One-Time Payments

The district has also included in its 6th financial proposal a one-time off-schedule payment to be granted in October 2024 to all active teachers on Step 12, utilizing 100% of the Section 27L Education Compensation funds. This equates to approximately $1,200.81 per Step 12 teacher. This is intended as a direct financial benefit to teachers who have reached the highest step of the salary schedule, rewarding their longevity and commitment.

Recruit New Teachers

The district's proposals include specific provisions for new hires, especially those filling critical shortage positions. Currently, any teacher commencing service with the district may be credited with up to a maximum of five (5) years of previous teaching experience, regardless of how much experience they have in another school district. The district has proposed that the Board may grant credit for previous experience without restriction.

The district has proposed that teachers filling critical shortage positions, as determined by the Board, may be placed above the step that corresponds to their previous years of teaching experience (if any). Teachers placed on any step above the one corresponding to their previous years of teaching experience will advance along the step schedule at a rate of a half-step per school year until their initial step placement and years of teaching experience are equivalent. If a teacher in a critical shortage position is hired above Step 5, the Association President will be informed.

The district's proposals represent a comprehensive strategy to enhance teacher compensation, reward staff for their long-term commitment, address past inequities, and attract and retain talented new educators. By combining immediate financial incentives with long-term adjustments and operational improvements, the district aims to create a supportive and fair working environment for its teachers while maintaining financial responsibility.