Detroit public school teachers are getting a raise ahead of the 2017-18 school year for the first time in nearly a decade.
Their contracts cleared the final hurdle after the city's financial commission approved a 7 percent bump in pay.
School starts for the Detroit Public Schools Community District on Sept. 5, and they are still looking to hire more teachers.
The 7 percent pay raise comes over a 2-year period, and will move the starting pay from $35,600 per year to $38,500 a year. That's the pay raise some hope will fill the nearly 300-teacher shortage for this school year.
The number doesn't include the 100 teachers whose employment is still pending approval.
The teacher's union president says she approves the commissions decision but says 7 percent isn't enough and isn't what they deserve.
The contract also increases the number of steps on the pay scale from 10 to 15, meaning it will take longer for teachers to get to the top.
After the increase over the next two years, the contract requires all sides to come back to the bargaining table to negotiate third year salaries.
