Palatine Township Elementary District 15 approves 5-year contract with bus drivers

The Palatine Township Elementary District 15 school board approved a five-year collective bargaining agreement with the District 15 Transportation Union Wednesday despite one member's concerns that the pay increases are too steep.

With the contract, bus drivers will receive up to a 5 percent increase in hourly wages this school year. Bus drivers' hourly rate will range from $16.70 per hour for new drivers to $23.52 per hour for senior drivers.

In years two through five of the contract, bus drivers and aides will see a minimum 1.75 percent increase in hourly rates each year.

District 15 Superintendent Scott Thompson said the actual raise employees will see each year is tied to the amount of increase the district receives in property taxes, and is capped at 5 percent.

Board member Manjula Sriram, the lone "no" vote on the contract, says the pay increases don't line up with other school districts.

"Based on the numbers, if we give a raise of 5 percent to DTU members, the cost per mile increase (to operate a school bus) would be to $6.62," Sriram said. She gave lower numbers for other districts, but said the numbers she had for them weren't current.

Sriram says with increases compounded over five years, the disparity with what other districts pay would only increase.

Board member Gerald Chapman applauded the contract, saying neither the district nor the bus drivers got exactly what they wanted in the deal.

"We were focused on what was in the best interests of the drivers and the kids and I think historically this is one of the better contracts that have been negotiated," Chapman said.

The school district and the union said in a joint news release that both parties agreed to training, mentoring and professional development meant to improve student safety.

But Sriram, who said she has only received a summary of the contract, expressed concerns over how effective that would be.

"Over the last two years, there has not been any concrete metrics shared by the district to know if our previous contract has made any positive strides in this area," she said.

The agreement is effective with the start of this school year and runs through the 2019-2020 school year.