Reading Schools weigh $2.50 raise for cafeteria workers

The Reading School District board of directors votes tonight on a tentative three-year contract for the workers who cook and serve meals in the district's schools. The agreement gives those food-service employees a raise of $2.50 an hour in the first year and sets new starting pay for the jobs in its kitchens. The board meets at 7 p.m. at 800 Washington Street.

What the contract does

Item 7.7 on Wednesday's agenda approves a collective bargaining agreement with the PA Joint Board of Workers United, SEIU Local 155, the union that represents the district's food-service staff. A collective bargaining agreement is the negotiated contract that sets pay, benefits, and working conditions for a group of employees. The deal is a tentative agreement: it takes effect only after both the union's members and the school board ratify it, and tonight's board vote is that second step.

The deal runs July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2029. Current workers get an across-the-board raise each year: $2.50 an hour in the first year, then $2.00 an hour in each of the next two years, $6.50 an hour by the end of the contract.

The contract also sets the starting hourly pay for each job: $17.25 for a lead cook, $16.75 for a unit lead or cook, $16.50 for an assistant cook, $16.25 for a cashier, and $16.00 for a general worker or floater.

Beyond the raises

The contract also changes benefits and hours for the food-service group:

• Paid holidays go from six to eight, and personal days from one to two.
• Longevity payments, paid once a year, run from $200 for workers with three to five years of service up to $1,200 for those with 25 or more years.
• Overtime is standardized to the federal rule of more than 40 hours in a week, replacing older daily and weekly thresholds, and lead cooks and unit leads move to a seven-and-a-half-hour workday.
• The uniform allowance rises from $250 to $275, and health-plan contribution rates stay at 10 percent for the life of the agreement.

The district did not attach a headcount for the group or a total cost for the contract to the agenda, so the number of workers covered and the full budget impact are not stated in the posted documents. Food-service pay in a Pennsylvania school district is part of the budget that property taxes support; for how the school portion of a tax bill works, see our guide on Berks County property tax.

Also on Wednesday's agenda

Two other money items are on the same agenda. Item 6.12 is a tax-exempt reimbursement resolution tied to the district's 12th and Marion Elementary School projects, a declaration that lets the district pay itself back from future tax-exempt borrowing for money it spends on the work now. Item 6.6 approves the district's August construction bill list, which totals $5,834,493.42.

How to attend

The regular meeting is Wednesday, August 26, at 7 p.m. at the district administration building, 800 Washington Street, Reading. For what school boards control and how they fit alongside county and municipal government, see how Berks County government works. A recap will follow if the vote or the final terms change what is described here.