STANTON, Mich. - School board members in Central Montcalm Public Schools want to know how much a retirement incentive plan would cost the district before giving final approval, according to The Greenville Daily News.
The district offered a retirement package to teachers last year, but the new version includes support staff and community education teachers, according to The Daily News. In general, it would offer long-term employees a payment equal to half their base salary, distributed over two years, The Daily News reported. Support staff would receive a one-time $2,500 payment, the article said.
The board voted to approve developing the plan but wants final say over how many employees can participate, which determines the final cost, according to The Daily News.
While the plan would save the district money up front by replacing retirees with newcomers at lower salaries, that savings would disappear within six to eight years as new employees move up the salary scale, Superintendent Jacob Helms told the board, The Daily News reported.
Helms said 15 to 18 employees qualify for the plan based on its guidelines, the article said.
SOURCE:
The (Greenville) Daily News, "CM school board OKs exit packages," March 17, 2009
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest, "Retirement costs headed up," March 9, 2009
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "The First Two Letters of MEA," March 16, 2009
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