Members of the Joliet Township High School Paraprofessional Council have announced that they will hold a rally ahead of the regular District 204 school board meeting as part of their push for increased pay in a new contract.

Media Director for the Illinois Federation of Teachers Amy Excell said that the union’s previous contract expired on July 1 and the union has been in negotiations with the district since April, including sessions with federal mediators.

The union represents 110 instructional paraprofessionals and security staff members at Joliet’s two high schools - Joliet Central and Joliet West -who argue that raises would improve school conditions by decreasing the district’s high job turnover rate.

“Our members are the lowest paid among neighboring school districts, with most barely earning minimum wage,” said Council President Sarah McLaurin in a statement. “The result has been extremely high job turnover for instructional paraprofessionals and security personnel in District 204.”

Excell reported that union members in District 204 have a starting wage of between $15 and $16 per hour, while security staff at Lockport Township High School District 205 start at $25 per hour and their counterparts at Valley View District 365U start at between $18 and $19 per hour.

Valley View staff are also currently expecting a raise in their ongoing contract negotiations.

“Students are hurt the most [by the turnover], particularly those with special needs who build relationships with us and rely on our support to help them learn and feel safe in school,” said McLaurin. “We are committed to our students’ safety and success. The board should feel the same way. It’s time for them to stop this dangerous cycle of turnover that hurts our students and makes our school less safe.”

Union members plan to gather at 5:30 p.m. ahead of the board meeting at Joliet West High School along with teachers and members of the community to “demand a fair contract with a living wage” and make remarks during the public comment portion of the meeting.

At this time a strike by the union is not immediately on the table as members have not voted to authorize one, but it has not been ruled out if negotiations continue to stall.

McLaurin has stated that members “want to avoid a strike” but noted “the school board must finally bargain with us seriously.”

“I want the families and community to know that our PSRPs are just asking for a living wage and better working conditions so we can stem the dangerous turnover rate in the district and help our students succeed,” McLaurin said, adding that many of union members are also taxpayers in the district and “we struggle to feed our families and pay our bills to do the important work we love - keeping students safe and helping them learn.”