In 1995, as part of a major revision to Michigan’s school code, a seemingly innocuous section was added to the law that stated that school districts had the option to implement merit pay, based on job performance or job accomplishment. It was innocuous because school districts could bargain on merit pay with or without the legislature’s specific blessing, as it could be considered a mandatory subject of collective bargaining over wages and/or a term or condition of employment. Time and the legislature —being what they are — fiddled with this simple idea of allowing school districts the option of a merit pay and turned it into something mandatory and untenable. As of July 1, 2024 the entire idea of merit pay will be removed from statute.

We are now back to square one. School districts and or labor unions are able to bring up the topic of merit pay as a mandatory subject of collective bargaining if they so choose. If one side brings it up, the other side must bargain on the issue. The question remains, is there merit to the idea?

As usual, the answer is “it depends.” The US Department of Labor defines Merit Pay as “a raise in pay based on a set of criteria set by the employer. This usually involves the employer conducting a review meeting with the employee to discuss the employee’s work or performance during a certain time period. Merit pay is a matter between an employer and an employee (or the employee’s representative).”  The main factor would be how you define “merit.” If the criteria is driven only by test scores, you risk creating a system where your instructional staff vie for the easiest pupils with the least amount of hurdles to learning. If you create a system where your criteria is based only on head count and at-risk numbers, you risk a system where staff vie for numbers without concern for outcome.

With the removal of legislative pressures to institute a merit pay system based on their ideas, school districts and unions should feel freer to think outside the box and implement systems that fit their goals. Perhaps a system that provides a strong benefit to the students could arise.