Grand Rapids Public Schools employee salaries, 2009-2011

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Grand Rapids Public Schools employee salaries for fiscal year 2010-2011 were $147,886,159. This was a total of 69.55% of the $212,627,550 in general fund expenditures.

Salaries for Michigan schools were 16.5 percent higher on average than salaries for Indiana public school teachers, according to the 2010 salary comparison from the U.S. Department of Education.

The Manhattan Institute for Policy Research published a study in 2007 looking at 66 metro areas in the United States that suggested public school teachers in metro Grand Rapids, Michigan work the fewest hours per week (among the metro areas for which there is data) at 32.6 hours per week. Also, the study uncovered that metro Grand Rapids has the second-highest public school teacher earnings relative to white-collar workers, with teachers making 80% more.

Salaries and benefits

Grand Rapids Public Schools spent $79,745,743.99 on teacher salaries and $41,056,263.91 on benefits in 2009-2010.

Expenditure	Cost
Salary	$96,254,478
Employee Insurance Benefits	$23,028,731
FICA/Retirement/Unemployment/WC	$26,659,270
Other Personnel Expenditures	$1,943,680
Total Personnel Expenditures	$147,886,159

The GRPS website posted the salaries and benefits information of all employees who earned over $100,000 a year in 2009.

• There was one employee who earned over $150,000 a year in total compensation
• The highest paid employee was the superintendent, who earned $195,003.28 in total compensation
• There were 20 employees whose total compensation was more than $100,000 a year
• Total compensation includes: insurance, pension, Social Security, Tax Sheltered Annuity, ORS service credit purchase, auto/mileage allowance and Medicare costs

According to TeacherSalaryInfo.com, the average teacher salary is $47,404. The following table outlines teacher salaries by grade level:

Grade level	Average	10th percentile	25th percentile	Median	75th percentile	90th percentile
Pre-school	$35,977	$18,638	$23,648	$37,819	$46,013	$52,643
Kindergarten	$48,654	$28,932	$36,508	$49,084	$60,593	$68,665
Elementary	$49,217	$32,957	$38,632	$46,068	$60,527	$73,000
Middle school	$52,094	$34,138	$40,244	$48,597	$65,751	$74,178
High school	$51,080	$32,653	$39,829	$48,542	$63,366	$74,432

Privatizing school bus jobs

In April 2005, the Grand Rapids Board of Education voted to outsource 225 school bus driver and mechanic jobs to a private firm. This move was projected to save the school district an estimated $2 million in 2006, with a total savings of $18 million over five years. This move was opposed by those who believed the school district should be responsible for supporting those jobs.

Employee contributions to health premiums

When a proposal was made in a 2011 legislative hearing that would make public school employees pay up to 20% of their health care premiums, Grand Rapids Public Schools Superintendent Bernard Taylor opposed it, speculating that non-teaching employees in his district would be adversely affected.

Salary records project

In 2011, Sunshine Review chose 152 local governments as the focus of research on public employee salaries. The editors of Sunshine Review selected eight states with relevant political contexts (listed alphabetically):

1. California
2. Florida
3. Illinois
4. Michigan
5. New Jersey
6. Pennsylvania
7. Texas
8. Wisconsin

Within these states, the editors of Sunshine Review focused on the most populous cities, counties and school districts, as well as the emergency services entities within these governments. The purpose of this selection method was to develop articles on governments affecting the most citizens.

The salary information garnered from these states were a combination of existing online resources and state Freedom of Information Act requests sent out to the governments.

A study published by the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia said the city of Philadelphia faced challenges owing to the cost of public employee pensions. The report claimed the amount that Philadelphia paid to pension recipients limited the city’s ability to use its budget effectively.

The report said there were more individuals receiving pension benefits—33,907 claimants in 2006—than workers in the city—28,701. The authors recommended three steps towards addressing the problem of high costs in pensions: improved data collection, expanded transparency initiatives, and reductions to the city's overall budget.

Salary schedules can be published as ranges, not as specific compensation figures, and may leave out compensation received through health and retirement benefits, as well as benefits such as commuter allowances and cell phone reimbursements. This project aimed to close the gap and provide a more accurate picture of public employee salaries for the sake of public education and transparency.

See also

• Michigan local government salary: Counties
• Public employee salary
• Grand Rapids Fire Department, Michigan
• Grand Rapids Police Department, Michigan
• Grand Rapids employee salaries

External links

• Grand Rapids Public Schools official website
• Grand Rapids Public Schools Section 5000 – Personnel
• State Budget Solutions -- Michigan
• Grand Rapids Public Schools Salaries—Glassdoor
• Average Teacher Salary in Grand Rapids Public Schools—Teacher Salary Info
• "GRPS raises could help narrow pay gap," WoodTV8, September 8 2010
• GRPS unveils budget with $10M in cuts, May 18 2010