Teacher pay negotiations continue after confusion over Lee Schools statement

LEE COUNTY, Fla. — The Lee County School District and teachers' union remain at the bargaining table over teacher pay, but confusion erupted after the district posted a statement online suggesting both sides had reached agreements on key salary concepts.

The Teachers Association of Lee County (TALC) quickly disputed the district's characterization, with union President Kevin Daly saying no agreements have been finalized.

"There has been no agreement on any of this," Daly said.

The confusion began when the district released a statement indicating both sides had agreed on key salary concepts, including raising the starting salary to $54,500 and adding 45 minutes of work per week for instructional staff.

But Daly said the statement was inaccurate and forced him into damage control mode.

"My morning has been in damage control," Daly said.

Ron Iarrussi, the district's chief negotiator and director of labor and employee relations, said the statement was meant to highlight positive progress from their latest bargaining session.

"I think there was a misinterpretation that we came to a tentative agreement on the entire contract, which really isn't the case," Iarrussi said.

Both sides are currently discussing 20 different options for teacher compensation. One prominent option includes raising the starting salary to $54,500 and adding 45 minutes of work per week, but union leadership says teachers oppose the additional work time.

"We've heard from enough people to know that that's really a pain point for people, even at a compensated rate. It's not a raise because it's more time at work," Daly said.

The union president emphasized that while the additional time would be compensated at about a 2% salary increase, teachers view it as more work rather than a true raise.

Iarrussi said the district is offering a 7% salary increase overall, which he described as significantly more than what the state requires.

"The state requires us to give a certain percentage increase to our teachers, and that really is less than 1% of what we're offering right now," Iarrussi said.

The district's proposal includes $30 million in salary increases for all teachers, regardless of experience level. The package also includes unprecedented benefits such as bereavement leave and four weeks of parental leave.

"We have leave language for bereavement leave and four weeks of parental leave," Iarrussi said.

Daly said teachers have three main priorities: the ability to pay bills and enjoy life on one job, affordable health insurance, and the ability to retire with dignity.

"They want the ability to have just one job and pay all their bills and maybe go out to dinner and maybe go on vacation," Daly said.

The union president also emphasized concerns about salary compression, ensuring veteran teachers receive fair increases compared to new hires.

"The 20-year teacher, are they going to get at least $4,000 or are they going to get less?" Daly said.

Both sides plan to present new proposals at Monday's bargaining session. Iarrussi said the district hopes to reach an agreement so teachers can receive additional compensation by the holiday break.

"Our hope is that we come to an agreement Monday evening so that we can get a ratification and a board vote as soon as possible," Iarrussi said.

Daly encouraged community members to attend the public bargaining session, emphasizing that teacher negotiations affect the entire community's ability to attract businesses and maintain quality services.

"When the county commission goes out to get another company to come down here, probably the second question they ask after what tax breaks am I getting is, what does your school system look like?" Daly said.

The bargaining session is scheduled for Monday September 15th at 4:30 p.m.

"This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy."