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Board signals support for raising substitute pay to $15; staff to seek lower vendor markup
Summary
Human resources recommended raising Kelly Services substitute pay to $15 per hour to improve fill rates and align with forthcoming minimum‑wage increases; trustees directed staff to negotiate a lower agency markup to reduce budget impact.
Hernando County School District human resources staff recommended increasing substitute pay for workers placed through vendor Kelly Services to improve recruitment and classroom fill rates, and to prepare for Florida’s scheduled minimum‑wage changes.
Matt Goldrick, the district’s director of human resources, said Kelly Services currently achieves a roughly 91.9 percent classroom fill rate for the district and proposed raising the day‑to‑day substitute base pay from $13 per hour to $14 or $15 per hour. Goldrick told trustees the October 2025 state minimum‑wage schedule would require $14 and rise to $15 in October 2026; the district’s proposal to reach $15 now would put Hernando ahead of the schedule and aim to attract more candidates.
Trustees discussed budget and vendor markup. Several board members favored moving the rate to $15 per hour to recruit more reliable candidates. Board members also asked staff to negotiate a lower vendor markup (the portion Kelly Services adds above the worker’s pay) to reduce the district’s net cost. Trustee Duvall and others asked whether the district could run its own substitute pool, but superintendent and staff said that in the current labor market and with the district’s size, outsourcing to a national vendor yields higher fill rates and reduces administrative burden.
Goldrick presented a pay matrix showing proposed increases for day‑to‑day subs, long‑term subs and retired teachers; trustees asked staff to pursue negotiations with Kelly to lower the agency markup (staff referenced the district’s current Kelly markup at about 1.3 and asked for direction to attempt to reduce the markup toward 1.25 or lower). Trustees also asked staff to return with concrete budget impacts and contract language after negotiations.
Board members signaled consensus for the policy direction: raise substitute pay toward $15 per hour and attempt to negotiate a lower Kelly Services fee. No formal motion was made at the workshop; staff said they would return with details for board approval and a budget amendment if required.
