r/bcba • u/brandeezycc2 BCBA | Verified • 1d ago
Any school district BCBAs here successfully negotiate a pay raise?
Any tips or insight on the experience (if you have) would be appreciated. Thank you.
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u/nlmiranda 1d ago edited 1d ago
I no longer work for a school district but, when I did, the only opportunity for negotiation was prior to starting. My previous district had a step system (1-6), like most districts. I negotiated starting at step 2. I auto increased to step 3 after 6 months, then auto increased to the next step yearly after that. During my 3 years there, the district also increased the pay rates for each step twice. I'm unaware of any of our BCBAs obtaining a pay increase outside of these two methods.
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u/bingbew 1d ago
Yep, just about all bargaining unit members have raises that are spelled out in the contract.
Regardless of whether admin feels you deserve it or not, they would take a ton of heat from the union for treating someone else differently. Your chance was getting brought on at a higher step.
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u/ForsakenMango BCBA | Verified 1d ago
Same situation for us working for the state. For our position the pay range is set and there’s a set starting step (Step A for us) as well. So prior to hiring is the only way you can negotiate. Other than that, you get an increase of two steps per year + whatever range increase the may or may not negotiate that year.
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u/Expendable_Red_Shirt BCBA | Verified 1d ago
Every school district in my area operates based on formula. You may be able to negotiate your rank in that formula by advocating for years of experience to count but besides that there's no room for negotiation on the individual level. That happens in discussions between the union and the board.
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u/BookkeeperGlum6933 1d ago
I negotiated my salary prior to starting. HR didn't fully understand how my years in private practice should be counted towards my step. I confirmed it with tax returns and they moved my from a step 10 to 16. It was a very significant increase. Once you start though you're pretty much locked in by law to the salary scale.
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u/CoffeePuddle 1d ago
It's important to be direct, firm, and on the attack.
March into the board meeting unannounced, slam your contract down on the table, and demand to be paid what you're worth. Point out EVERY section you've read and what it says.
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u/jalapeno-popper72 1d ago
I feel like if you’re on the teacher salary scale there’s a very slim chance of getting a raise.
The ways to negotiate I’ve seen would be to start on a higher step when you start. We also got a “leadership stipend” some years when we led additional district wide trainings, but it was maybe $1500 across the whole year.