SCHOOL BOARD HIRES OUTSIDE ATTORNEY FOR SUPERINTENDENT CONTRACT TALKS AND LIKELY RAISE

The Board of Education moved a step closer to a likely raise for Superintendent John Ramos with the hiring of an outside attorney for contract negotiations once the state superintendent salary cap is lifted.

The board voted, 6-0, with Johanna Wright abstaining and Maureen Jones and Donna Smith absent, at a special meeting Wednesday night to retain David B. Rubin of Metuchen to handle the renegotiation that is required under Ramos' contract. 

Rubin will be paid $185 per hour.

The district's five-year agreement with Ramos signed in 2015 includes a clause that triggers it to be reopened if the state superintendent salary cap is lifted or changed. And wording in that clause almost guarantees a raise.

It states, in part: 

In the event the Salary Cap Regulations sunset or are modified in any way or eliminated, the parties agree to reopen this contract to negotiate a new and more favorable compensation structure for the Superintendent.

The "more favorable compensation structure" would indicate Ramos will likely be entitled to a higher salary. The cap now limits his annual pay to $177,5000, although he received a $23,000 merit bonus in late 2016.

When the salary cap is changed next month, the top pay for Ramos' could reach $191,000 by law.

Prior to the vote Wednesday night, School Board President Elizabeth Baker explained the hiring of Rubin and the re-opener process: