ProComp negotiations will start soon, and the DCTA Bargaining Team has started preparation for the daunting task of negotiating a new compensation system for its teachers/SSPs. Since the time that ProComp 1.0 was created, and even since the time that 2.0 was implemented, education in general, and especially DPS has changed considerably. In 2005, there were about 4,400 teachers employed across the District. Today, that number is just short of 5,700, with all but about 300 of them in the ProComp system.
ProComp in its current form, through its incentive system, attempts to address a wide-range of issues. This creates a confusing, variable pay system where it?s difficult to determine what any given teacher will make from year to year. With so many teachers now in ProComp, and so many different incentives to be earned, the result has been the creation of an unstable system that is spending more than the ProComp trust is bringing in each year. These negotiations will be crucial to recreating a system that is stable going forward. The only way to do that is to first decide what the purpose of ProComp should be. In order to create an effective pay system, we need to start having an open conversation about what we are trying to accomplish. Only once that is determined can we start to determine how to accomplish that goal.
DCTA members will have the chance to have their voice heard in that process, very soon. Right now, the DCTA Bargaining Team is working on a ProComp Survey that will go out to all members. Then, once negotiations officially start, bargaining sessions will also be open to the public. Finally, once an Agreement is reached, DCTA members will ultimately make the decision whether the new ProComp Agreement is ratified. Together, we can create a stable, fiscally sound system with clear goals.