SACRAMENTO AND LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Unified School District has instituted a pay incentive program for high-level administrators, a move that is largely symbolic now but that some officials and board members hope will pave the way for more merit-based compensation in the future.
"I don't believe everyone is the same and I do believe there are individual skills and they should be rewarded," said Supt. Ramon C. Cortines. "I would hope some of the bargaining units would pick this up on their own."
Cortines informed the Board of Education of his plan in a closed meeting Tuesday.
The incentive pay is mandatory for two new senior administrators who report directly to Cortines. And 17 current employees have the option of joining the program, in which they could increase or lose up to 10% of their salary depending on several measures, including student test scores.
"The district is moving in a more progressive manner," said board member Yolie Flores Aguilar, who supports merit pay for all district employees. Flores Aguilar on Tuesday won support for a controversial plan that would allow charter groups and other outside operators to take over as many as 250 schools.
Only a few districts in the nation tie employee salary to student test scores, a move that most teacher unions have staunchly opposed.
With the pay incentive program and Flores Aguilar's resolution, the nation's second-largest school system is moving in step with the federal government, which has been pushing for greater educational accountability.
"They're discrete events, but they seem to be linked to the Obama administration's direction," said Priscilla Wohlstetter, director of the Center on Educational Governance at USC.
Administrators would be evaluated on several criteria, including the district's overall performance on state tests. Depending on their job title, employees would also be judged on their local district's performance and if they met negotiated, individual goals.
The overall cost should be small. If every eligible employee participates and meets all of their goals, the plan would cost about $300,000. District officials plan to seek private funds.
The employees affected by the plan, including local district superintendents, are not unionized and the move did not need school board approval. Unions would have to agree to any future pay-for-performance structures.
