St. Paul, MN - Today, the Minnesota House of Representatives passed HF 5237, the K-12 Education Supplemental Budget. Included in the bill was State Representative Brad Tabke’s (DFL - Shakopee) Education Support Professional Bill of Rights legislation, focusing on the pay and training of paraprofessionals.
“With this bill, we’re standing with our paraprofessionals - without whom our schools could not operate - and ensuring they get the pay and support they deserve,” said Rep. Tabke. “When schools have e-learning days, salaried employees at Minnesota’s schools get paid. That’s not the case for hourly employees, even though paying these employees is already factored into a school’s budget.”
The ESP Bill of Rights clarifies that paraprofessional locals must be consulted on the types of training that paras receive during their 8 hours of required training. It also ensures that hourly school employees will be paid as scheduled on weather, public health, or other cancellation days, not just e-learning days.
Having passed the Minnesota House, the bill now heads to the Minnesota Senate. A research summary of the legislation can be found here. A spreadsheet of investments in the bill can be found here. Video of the floor debate can be found here.
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