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Date: 10/19/2022
BELCHERTOWN – In a long-awaited meeting with many members of the school district present, the Belchertown School Committee met with the Select Board to discuss premium pay during a Oct. 11 meeting.
The Select Board members made it clear saying that teachers and staff in the schools have sent in letters stating how upset they felt after the town received American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money and found out they did not fall under any tier to receive premium pay.
On Sept. 19, the Select Board approved a premium pay proposal awarding part-time benefitted non-public safety employees $1,000, part-time benefited public safety employees $1,500, full-time non-public safety employees $2,000, full-time public works employees at $3,000 full-time public safety employees at $4,000.
Each member of the Select Board thanked everyone who sent in a letter expressing their feelings and wanted to clear the air.
Vice Chair Jim Barry said, “People who assume that we think school employees are not town employees are absurd and people to accuse us of not talking [school employees] seriously is absurd. I do not like the attitude and the way some people are approaching me.”
Member Peg Louraine agreed, “The position of the town is being mean to the school employees’ got under my skin a little bit.”
Louraine added that the school did receive Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds that they were able to use.
Superintendent Brian Cameron said, “We only got $1.3 million that we could use on premium pay. The rest of the money went to educating the youth and children of Belchertown. No one in this room benefited from that money. We did what was right to educate.”
The School Committee put together its own proposal to receive money from ARPA to be able to pay its employees who worked during the coronavirus pandemic.
The proposed amount came to $617,250 and would award each eligible member $2,000. School Committee Chair Heidi Gutekenst mentioned how the school has been able to reward $500 so far to employees.
Each Select Board member expressed their gratitude for teachers and Chair Jen Turner said they should be recognized as the “heroes that they are.”
She added, “I think that teachers are not only educators, but they are asked to be mental health providers, caretakers, public safety officers. They do a lot. I think thy deserve this money.”
The School Committee also sent in another request for $300,000 to upgrade their “outdated” security cameras and system but Select Board Clerk Ed Boscher wanted to look at the board’s list of all its requested projects before voting on that and everyone else agreed.
Boscher added, “I have no problem with voting on the proposed amount for premium pay of $617,250 and let the School Committee decide what they do with the money.”
The proposed amount for premium pay was approved unanimously.