Gov. Walker wants all public school teachers in Wisconsin to pay at least 12% of the cost of their health insurance. Problem is…school districts don’t know what that exactly means.
Walker’s proposal is included in his recently-unveiled budget. Under the measure, individual districts would lose proposed increases in state aid if the 12% requirement isn't met.
Speaking on a recent edition of Education Matters, Racine School Board member Dennis Wiser notes that calculating what teachers actually pay for their health insurance is complex. "The cost to an employee for insurance includes out of pocket premium costs. It includes co-pays. It includes costs for deductibles," Wiser said. And we have yet to hear an explanation on how those get pulled together to calculate the 12%."
Incoming school board member Brian O’Connell says it’s another example of changes handed down from above that create uncertainty and morale problems for employees that are left for the school district to deal with. "We're going to have to provide some stability despite those factors that are going on in Madison which frankly do not seem that well-crafted," O'Connell said.
The two men spoke on a recent edition of Education Matters that featured the three candidates who are running for seats on the Racine School Board.
All three candidates are running unopposed in their respective districts. O’Connell is replacing long-time board member Don Nielsen who’s stepping down. Both Wiser, and the third candidate, Mike Frontier, are incumbents.
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