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Waukegan translators urge reclassification, say pay lags compared with market
Summary
District translators told the Board that their job was excluded from the 2024 nonunion salary study, that their duties require a bachelor’s degree and state interpreter training, and they asked the board to reexamine their grade and compensation.
Alexandra Mora, one of Waukegan Public Schools’ district translators, told the Board of Education on June 10 that the district’s translator position was not included in the 2024 nonunion salary study and that the current grade assignment does not reflect the work or required qualifications.
Mora said the translator post is a 12‑month, district‑wide role that requires a bachelor’s degree and specialized interpreter training, and she said the pay “falls way below” comparable wages. “Most [comparable] positions were not 12 months and they were not district wide,” she said, and administrators told translators comparable hourly rates were “$27 to $34 per hour,” which Mora said converts to roughly $56,000 to $71,000 annually—near the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024 median salary for interpreters and translators.
The translators asked the board, in connection with Item 5D (a job‑description review), to ensure the position is reevaluated and placed at an appropriate grade and compensation level to match the required qualifications and responsibilities. Mora said translators were not interviewed as part of the earlier study and requested a transparent review process.
Board members asked administration for follow‑up. Superintendent Moten said the district has been meeting with translators and that staff would produce a timeline of meetings and engagements and provide that to the board “before the end of the week.” Several board members emphasized that job‑description reviews should include input from frontline employees as well as supervisors.
No formal reclassification or salary change was approved at the June 10 meeting; the item discussed was informational and tied to a broader job‑description review process. Board members asked administration to bring clarifying details back to the board and to ensure employees who already hold higher qualifications would not be penalized by any reclassification.
Community relevance: the translators serve Spanish‑speaking families districtwide and said their work covers IEP meetings, graduations and other events where language access affects students and families.
What happened next: administration committed to a timeline and to documenting prior contacts with translators; any change to pay or grade would require subsequent formal board action.
