1/5 of N.J. school districts report wage freezes or cuts

About a fifth of New Jersey school districts have reported staff wage freezes or reductions in their budget plans for the coming school year, the Christie administration announced Tuesday.

The vast majority were made to administrators' pay, with support staff coming in second. Teachers in 11 districts accepted wage freezes, while in five districts they have accepted wage reductions.

Of 116 districts statewide freezing or reducing wages, 23 were in Burlington and Camden Counties, according to state data. Gloucester County data were not available Tuesday.

Of the local districts, Florence in Burlington County and Woodstown-Pilesgrove in Salem County were the only ones mentioned for teachers' taking voluntary wage freezes. Moorestown did not budget for raises for any employees other than principals and supervisors under contract.

Last week, Gov. Christie reiterated his call for school district employees to freeze their wages to help spare jobs and programs. Districts that did, he said, would get some additional aid from Social Security and Medicare payroll-tax savings.

On Tuesday, Christie slammed teachers and their unions as failing to respond to his challenge.

"Unfortunately, these figures illustrate the obvious: that the teachers' unions overwhelmingly believe everyone else should share in the sacrifice, but they alone should be held harmless in the middle of this fiscal crisis," Christie said in a statement.

The New Jersey Education Association, which represents the majority of the state's teachers, shot back that Christie was calling on teachers to sacrifice, but not the affluent.

"People are frustrated and angry that the governor seems fixated on extracting concessions from school employees when he is insisting on a significant tax cut for the wealthy," said union spokesman Steve Baker.

Every district in the state is slated for aid cuts in the coming year, and many face dramatic staff and program reductions. The cuts stem from an $819 million reduction in education aid to help close an $11 billion state budget gap.

Districts in which staff agree to wage freezes are in line to get additional aid amounting to 7.65 percent of the resulting wage savings on salaries up to $106,000, said state Education Department spokeswoman Kathryn Forsyth. On higher salaries, the savings are less. The additional aid applies to freezes on any salaries, not only teachers'.

For many districts, the additional aid amounts will be modest, but many administrators who took the freeze said it was the right thing to do.

"Until you start at the top, you can't even approach those other unions," said Pat Austin, business administrator for Pemberton Township schools. She and her superintendent both have accepted wage freezes.

In some districts, the wage savings are making a difference.

Even before the governor made his freeze plea, Woodstown-Pilesgrove staff districtwide began pulling together and recently agreed to forgo raises to deal with a $3 million budget deficit from loss of aid. The district still is looking at layoffs, but Superintendent Thomas Coleman said the $611,000 saved through the wage freeze will spare 12 positions.

"I'm really proud of our people," Coleman said.

In the Lenape Regional High School District, a wage freeze by top administrators, principals, assistant principals, directors, and nonunion staff - also decided before the governor's call - will save more than $506,000, according to Superintendent Emily Capella.

"We're currently talking with our teachers and support staff," she said.