SISD school board votes no on raises; reduces health plan contributions
by Claudia Lorena Silva, El Paso Matters
June 7, 2024
The Socorro school board voted Thursday not to give teachers and staff raises for the 2024-25 school year and to require employees to pay for more of their health care costs to combat the district’s ongoing financial crisis.
“The recommendations and decisions for these actions were not taken lightly, nor taken without much deliberation, but were made in an effort to alleviate our budget and propel the district to a better financial situation,” Socorro ISD’s acting superintendent James Vasquez said in a letter sent to employees on Friday.
This comes as the district is dealing with a $33 million deficit for this school year, an expected $41 million for next year and is being overseen by two conservators from the Texas Education Agency as it also searches for a new superintendent. Adding to the turmoil is the recent arrests of two of its trustees — Pablo Barrera and Ricardo Castellano — on charges related to their official duties.
The board is expected to hold a public comment period and approve the budget on June 19.
The changes to the health plan would ultimately cut SISD’s employee's take-home pay starting January 2025, when the new rate goes into effect.
The board voted 5-2 to reduce the district’s employee's health fund contribution by $20, changing it from $575 to $555 a month. Employees will now pay the $20 difference. Barrera and Castellano voted against the motion.
In a letter sent to teachers and staff, Vasquez said the reduction was “much less than the $150 per employee previously considered.”
Texas law requires employers like school districts to contribute at least $225 a month to their employees’ health care plans — this includes a $75 contribution from the state and $150 from the district.
Director of Human Resources Mario Carmona said the change could cause some employee’s premiums to go up by more than $20 a month depending on their health plan.
“There's going to be an offset,” Carmona said. “We're going to need to make additional adjustments to be able to level that you know the minimum and maximum (cost). Our goal is to be able to have that information ready for the June 19 board meeting.”
The board also voted unanimously not to give raises or stipends to any of its employees during the 2024-25 school year, which starts in August.
Socorro American Federation of Teachers President Veronica Hernandez said the move seems like a pay cut to many employees.
“I think it was drastic and I think it was wrong for them to make it punitive on the employees which have no control over how they mishandled funds,” Hernandez told El Paso Matters. “Our teachers continue to do an excellent job and to not give them a raise and to deduct contributions from their health plan is kicking them while they’re down.”
This article first appeared on El Paso Matters and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
