Providence Offers $5,000 Bonus to Teachers Who Retire Early
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
The City of Providence is offering a $5,000 payment to any public school teacher who agrees to retire early—in the hope of avoiding painful and controversial terminations in order to close a $110 million deficit.
Plus, the city said that teachers who retire this year will not have to pay the additional 2.5 percent contribution to their state pensions that Governor Lincoln Chafee has proposed for fiscal year 2012.
The letter was sent out to 215 teachers and administrators who were eligible for retirement, Mayor Angel Taveras announced in a news release yesterday.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe average compensation for a Providence teacher—salary and benefits together—is $98,695, but teachers who are eligible for retirement often make more than that.
If 70 teachers accept the offer the district will cut personnel costs by $6.65 million—after taking into account the cost of the retirement bonuses.
Teachers have until April 4 to decide if they want to take advantage of the offer.
“With more than 200 individuals eligible for retirement, the retirement incentive will make it possible to significantly reduce, or possibly even eliminate, the number of pre-retirement teacher and administrator positions that must be eliminated as a result of the school closures,” the Mayor’s office said in a statement. “The administration is hopeful that the vast majority of teachers will return to the classroom next year.”
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