Protecting Head Start Pay Raises

In years past, the federal budget for Head Start was inconsistent and unpredictable. In addition, there weren’t always stipulations that any portion of the increases had to go toward employee COLA raises. That meant that sometimes, management could spend it all however they wanted—their own raises or new office furniture, for example.

This year, Head Start funding has been standardized to allow for year-over-year increases, and there’s a clear mandate from the Obama Administration that the annual increases must go toward employee wages. SEIU was a strong voice advocating for this change.

Even with these new federal protections in place, there is nothing that prevents management from using the remaining discretionary money however they want. In a union setting, however, that money becomes negotiable at the bargaining table.  At CDI Head Start, for example, Local 99 members were able to win all the money for classroom personnel wage adjustments.