Education

Push To Raise Teacher Pay Stymied in New Mexico

By Mark Walsh — March 15, 1989 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Despite backing from both the governor and the legislature, efforts to increase the pay of New Mexico school employees have run into a number of stumbling blocks in recent weeks.

With the legislative session scheduled to end on March 18, lawmakers last week were debating a new fiscal 1990 budget, after Gov. Garry Carruthers vetoed an appropriations bill. That measure had included a 5 percent raise for fiscal 1990, which begins July 1, and a 5 percent bonus for the last three months of the current fiscal year. The bonus would have averaged $317 for each teacher and school employee.

Lobbyists for the state’s two major teachers’ unions say the pay raise did not play a role in Mr. Carruthers’ veto decision, noting that he had backed the idea in his State of the State Message this year.

The Governor vetoed the state spending plan because it left out many of his priorities and because he felt it exceeded his projections for state revenues, said John Mitchell, president of the New Mexico Federation of Teachers.

Mr. Mitchell added, however, that union officials were disappointed by the alternative budget that the Governor submitted to the legislature. Although it included funding for the raises, he said, it eliminated funding to cover the rising costs of school districts’ insurance premiums.

“That could put the districts in the position where, if they paid to make up the insurance shortfall, they wouldn’t have the money for the raise,” Mr. Mitchell explained.

Attorney General’s Opinion

Legislators had to come up with some creative lawmaking to provide teachers and school employees with a bonus this year after Attorney General Hal Stratton threw a monkey wrench in their plan.

In an informal opinion last month, Mr. Stratton said that the proposed increase was illegal because the New Mexico Constitution forbids giving additional compensation to public employees after they have signed a contract. Most school employees in the state work under a contract.

In order to bypass the constitutional quagmire, legislators and lobbyists came up with a plan to require teachers and employees to perform extra work during the April-to-June period to enable them to qualify for the bonus.

“The money could be paid out if the teachers are providing additional services,” said Steve Lemken of the National Education Association of New Mexico. Because teachers already perform a number of extra duties, he said, such as grading papers at home, officials “would just have to use a checklist” to indicate that teachers qualify for the bonus.

“Hal Stratton is not a friend of education by any means, but we seem to have satisfied him,” Mr. Lemken said.

Solution Not Perfect

But Mr. Mitchell of the nmft said he was not totally pleased with the way the problem was resolved.

“We believe it makes it an ‘extra-pay-for-extra-work’ bonus,” he said. “Now school employees may be required to do extra work.”

And although teachers may easily qualify for the bonus, non-certified employees, who are supposed to be paid overtime for extra work under federal law, may not, he added.

The union officials said their main concern at present was making certain that the new budget includes funding for both the pay raises and districts’ insurance costs.

“We don’t believe the Senate or House will go along with the Governor’s proposal,” said Mr. Mitchell. “The House appropriations and finance committee is working on a budget that maintains the raise and provides an appropriate level for employee benefits.”

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: March 13, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 21, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 7, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: January 31, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read