Contract for Riverhead school non-instructional employees past expiration

Riverhead Central School District non-instructional employees have been working under an expired contract for the past six months and are demanding that the board of education engage in fair contract negotiations. 

The current contract between the school district and Civil Service Employees Association Unit 8792 workers began July 1, 2019, and expired June 30, 2024. The CSEA represents approximately 383 non-teaching employees districtwide, including custodians, food service workers, special education aides, technical support aides, security guards, bus drivers, safety monitors and clerical staff. 

Back in April, the same non-instructional employees stood before the district administration and board members to express their dissatisfaction with their current salaries and benefits — and this sentiment has not changed. 

“We have been in contract negotiations for about a year now, and we are so close to coming to an agreement that will not only meet the needs of the CSEA but the needs of the district as well,” said Indira Abrahamsen, a high school senior office assistant. “We need a contract that is fair and gives relief to all of our union unit members, especially since the majority of our unit is living paycheck to paycheck.”

Union members have collective bargaining rights under the National Labor Relations Act, and if a contract expires before the next contract is put in place, almost all the terms in the expired contract still apply while bargaining continues, according to the National Labor Relations Board. 

One of the biggest sticking points concerns pay rates for new hires compared to those of long-term employees, many of whom are locked in at specific increases per the current contract. Under that agreement, workers hired after Sept. 1, 2010, are paid at the “Bronze Level” of compensation, while those hired before that date receive higher “Platinum Level” wages. 

Without a successor agreement, bronze level employees stay at the current designation for the duration of their employment. 

Ms. Abrahamsen said out of the 383 CSEA employees, 223 of them have been hired within the last five years. Out of those 223, 115 workers have been hired by the district in the last two years alone. 

“For the last 10 years, I personally have had to work a second job to be able to afford living in this district, as well as working in it,” said Lisa Douglas-Aubé, a Riverhead clerical employee for over 20 years. “Many of our veteran employees, as well as our new ones, are in the same predicament.”

Many of the speakers noted that the district would benefit from granting non-instructional staff higher wages because it would lead to improved retention rates and recruitment. Kelly Turbush, a Riverhead school bus driver for 24 years, said the ongoing nationwide school bus driver shortage is largely due to low pay that does not reflect the level of responsibility and requirements of the role itself. 

She highlighted the reality of working as a school bus driver includes long hours — most starting the day in the early hours of the morning and ending late into the night — and sometimes not being able to take a break. If a child is alone, bus drivers will stay with a child until a parent arrives and at times, Ms. Turbush said, they put themselves at a physical risk, particularly in situations involving students with disabilities or those with behavioral challenges. Additionally, these workers undergo extensive testing and other requirements, such as random drug and alcohol tests, both written exams and road tests every two years, annual physical examinations, defensive driving courses and more. 

“Drivers and monitors are far more than transport providers — we play multiple roles in the students’ lives,” Ms. Turbush said. “We act as caregivers, teachers, helping students with their homework, counselors, even surrogate parents, [and] provide support and guidance to children who may experience difficult situations at home or in school.” 

Kerry Harrison, a computer lab assistant at Riley Avenue School, said just as technology has evolved, so has her role in the last seven years. The position requires more, higher-level work, however, she said technology department staff remain one of the least paid in the district. 

According to the Department of Civil Service, a computer laboratory assistant in Suffolk County typically makes between $24,877 and $48,036 annually. The current CSEA agreement states that in 2019-2020, bronze employees made $17.99 per hour, while platinum employees received $23.74 an hour. 

In the 2023-2024 school year, the hourly wage for a bronze-level computer lab assistant was $19.47 and $25.69 for platinum. These staff members work 7.5 hours and 183 days out of the year, according to their contract. 

“What we take on and what we do, we do it happily,” she said to the board. “We’ve lost a few tech people this year — it’s not sustainable living on Long Island at all.” 

Liam Russert, the regional director for CSEA Long Island, spoke in solidarity with the Riverhead CSEA unit and went into detail about the reality of living on the wages listed in the current contract. 

For example, a school bus driver currently makes $26.06 an hour at the bronze level, Mr. Russert noted. However, they work between five to eight hours a day and only 183 days a year. He argued that it is not easy for these employees to find a second job during the summer months, and many of the listed salaries are less than what a car costs today. 

“When you look at the rates on paper, you actually see a number that might be decent, but what it really translates to, when you look at the cost of living and the hours they work, it’s a lot less,” Mr. Russert said. “I really need [the board] to think long and hard about the importance of what [non-instructional employees] do and what those numbers actually translate to, and ask [them]selves, ‘What would … life be like if [they] got paid the same amount?’”

Contract negotiations are ongoing, and it is unclear if the CSEA non-instructional unit at Riverhead schools is considering a strike at this time. 

Correction: Workers hired after Sept. 1, 2010 are paid at the “Bronze Level,” those hired before that date receive higher “Platinum Level” wages. This information was misstated in a previous version of this article.