Teachers will receive a $837 pay
raise next year if the House of Delegates approves the version of the teacher
pay raise bill the Senate signed off on, with a 30-2 vote, on Wednesday at the
State Capitol.
The bill, SB 391, was changed on
the Senate floor to replace the two percent across-the-board pay raise Governor
Earl Ray Tomblin had originally proposed for both teachers and school service
personnel.
Supporters said the $837 amount
would help new teachers more than a percentage increase.
As proposed, school service workers
will still see the two percent across-the-board increase, while raises for
other state employees will total around $500.
The Senate Education Committee had
originally amended a $1,000 across-the-board pay raise for teachers into the
bill, but the Senate Finance Committee later removed that amendment because of
the cost.
The Senate bill includes a goal
of increasing starting teacher salaries in West Virginia
