Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200 Board of Education last week unanimously approved new four year contracts for the school’s security officers and buildings and grounds employees.
Over 4 years, it will cost the district about $239,000 for the Campus Safety Team and $495,000 for buildings and grounds.
The new contract for members of the school’s Campus Safety Team came one year before the current contract expired. Last year, security officers complained to the school board about their pay, working conditions and what they perceived as a lack of support from high ranking school officials. The security guards and the buildings and grounds staff were both represented by SEIU Local 73.
School board president Tom Cofsky praised the negotiating process.
“It was very positive communication between us and them on both of them,” Cofsky said. “We have agreements through 2027, so that’s good work.”
The starting salary for a security guard will increase to $21 an hour this year and rise by 50 cents an hour for each of the remaining three years of the contract. Campus Safety Team workers who work a shift starting after 12 p.m. will receive 50 cents an hour shift differential.
This year’s raises for security guards also will be adjusted for seniority. Next year, security guards will get a raise of $1 an hour. In the 2025-26 school year, they will get a raise of 75 cents an hour and they will get a raise of 65 cents an hour in the final year of the contract in the 2026-27 school year.
Campus Safety Team members who have worked at OPRF for 21 to 25 years will receive a longevity bonus of $2,000, while those who have worked at OPRF for more than 25 years will receive $3,000.
The buildings and grounds workers includes custodians, painters, engineers, carpenters, painters, electricians, dock attendants and grounds crew members. The starting pay for an OPRF custodian will increase to $21 an hour this year and rise to $23.17 an hour in the 2026-27 school year. The starting pay for members of the set up crew will rise to $23 an hour this year and increase to $25.38 an hour in 2026-27. The starting pay for dock attendants will increase to $24 an hour this year and rise to $26.48 an hour in 2026-27.
Buildings and ground workers will receive 3.5 percent raises for the first three years of the contract and a three percent raise in the 2026-27 final year of the contract. Those who work the second shift will get an added 40 cents an hour, and those who work the third shift will get an additional $1.25 an hour in differential pay.
Skilled-trades workers will be paid a percentage of the journeyman’s wage schedule for their first four years at OPRF, and then be paid at the full journeyman schedule. The full journeyman wage for 2023-24 will be $40.50 an hour for engineers, carpenters and electricians, $36 an hour for a painter and $31.05 an hour for a member of the grounds grew.
Buildings and grounds workers who have worked at OPRF for seven years or less are entitled to 10 days of paid vacation each year, those have worked at OPRF for between eight and 14 years get 15 days of paid vacation each year and those who have worked at OPRF for 15 years or more will get 20 days of vacation each year. All buildings and grounds workers who were hired before July 3, 2010 will get 20 days of paid vacation each year.
Buildings and grounds workers and member of the Campus Safety Team receive the same health and dental insurance as teachers although security guards must work at least 30 hours a week to be eligible for employer provided health and dental insurance.
Both contracts are effective retroactive to July 1.
