Bill to give education support staff $500 bonus, establish pay bump passes MD Senate
MARYLAND – A measure to help education support staff such as custodians, lunch workers, and bus drivers has passed unanimously in the Maryland Senate and now moves to the house.
SB831 would give two $500 bonuses for fiscal year 2022 and 2023 to education support workers while creating working groups to set and determine funding sources for permanent pay increases.
According to the Maryland State Education Association, the average salary for those positions hovers around $35,000 annually.
“Our education support professionals went back into schools to prepare meals, keep buildings clean, and they are grossly underpaid in the state of Maryland,” said MSEA President Cheryl Bost.
She says the working groups proposed by the bill would create an incentive for existing workers to stay in the field, as well as attract new workers to positions that many districts still struggle to fill.
“When we have low pay it creates this inherent turnover,” Bost said.
“Across our district, there are probably 20 or more positions that remain vacant and have been throughout the year,” said Director of Operations at Dorchester County Public Schools Beth Wilson.
The bus driver shortage affected rural districts like Dorchester County the most according to Wilson, who tells us she is thankful lawmakers are now valuing the work that goes on behind the scenes to make in-person instruction possible.
“Any financial assistance you can give them is well warranted,” she said.
But just how much financial assistance will be made permanent remains to be seen. The $500 bonuses are coming from Maryland’s 2022 surplus, in part due to ARPA funding. Those funds are already being used to fund pause in the state’s gas tax, and may not be available as a permanent funding source. MSEA President Cheryl Bost says the costs of increased salaries, can not be left solely to the operations budgets of individual districts.
She says the two $500 bonuses are a good step in the right direction from the state but says more needs to come to help keep compensation in positions competitive.
“That is a short thank you, a meaningful thank you but the workgroup in this bill allows us to look at the variety of ways in which we can enable working conditions and pay for our support staff professionals moving forward,” she said.
