• The Milwaukee School Board approved a phased cost-of-living raise for Milwaukee Public Schools staff.
• Staff will receive a 1.5% wage increase in July and another 1.13% increase in January, totaling 2.63%.
• The teachers union had pushed for the full 2.63% raise to be implemented in July.
• The union has filed a complaint, arguing the district has not bargained in good faith.

Milwaukee Public Schools teachers and other staff will receive cost‑of‑living raises next school year under a plan the Milwaukee School Board approved April 28, but not on the timeline the teachers union had pushed.

Following about two and a half hours in closed session, the board voted 7-1 to implement a 1.5% wage increase for staff starting in July and another 1.13% increase in January. Board member Mimi Reza voted against the plan, while Katherine Vannoy recused herself.

The cumulative 2.63% raise matches the rate of inflation and is the maximum amount the Milwaukee Teachers Education Association can bargain for under state law. The union and the district had negotiated the raises for over two months but failed to reach an agreement.

Superintendent Brenda Cassellius has said delaying a portion of the wage increases would save MPS money as it faces a $46 million budget deficit. The inflationary raises for MTEA-represented employees are estimated to cost about $10.6 million.

“Tonight’s Board vote shows we value our employees and their commitment to our students while also building a budget that will help us restore the district’s fiscal standing,” Cassellius said in a statement. “There were no easy decisions here, however we are ultimately bringing employees to a full 2.63% increase by January while maintaining our obligation to present a balanced budget to the Board next month.”

The district previously presented two other options to the union, including plans that would have delayed raises until January for some or all employees. The plan that board members approved gives workers the largest wage increase among the three options, said Robert Sanders, a city attorney who served as bargaining counsel for MPS.

The union’s sole ask, however, was to receive the full 2.63% hike to base wages by July 1. Union members had demanded MPS officials accept the MTEA’s offer in various protests throughout April.

The union presented no other options, Sanders told the board. He said the district then sought mediation, and the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission declared the parties at an impasse. The district put forth the phased raises as its final offer, which the union rejected.

“The district appreciates MTEA’s engagement throughout this process,” Sanders said. “While MTEA did not provide a counter proposal, the views and concerns MTEA shared informed the district’s decision to identify (this) option as its best and final offer.”

School boards may unilaterally implement a final wage offer after a mediator declares an impasse, though the move is risky because it could potentially violate labor law for failure to bargain in good faith, according to information from the Wisconsin Association of School Boards.

The teachers union already filed a complaint with the state’s employment relations commission on April 24, arguing the district mishandled the negotiations and misrepresented the savings associated with its proposals to the public.

“It is our hope that through this Prohibited Practices complaint to and in mediation with WERC, MPS will be compelled to bargain in good faith with MTEA and to be honest with our community,” MTEA President Ingrid Walker-Henry said in a statement April 27.

Walker-Henry previously said MPS staff have regularly received raises to match cost-of-living inflation over the last seven years, and such increases are necessary to stabilize retention and recruitment. Union leaders have said the MTEA’s preferred proposal would cost about $2.2 million more than the district’s plan.

The latest inflationary raises apply to all employees represented by the union, including teachers, paraprofessionals, school nurses, social workers and interpreters, among others. The district said it also intends to ask the board to extend the increases to employees who are not represented by MTEA, similar to how MPS has handled raises in past years.

Kayla Huynh covers K-12 education, teachers and solutions for the Journal Sentinel. Contact: khuynh@gannett.com. Follow her on X: @_kaylahuynh.

Kayla’s reporting is supported by Herb Kohl Philanthropies and reader contributions to the Journal Sentinel Community-Funded Journalism Project. Journal Sentinel editors maintain full editorial control over all content. To support this work, visit jsonline.com/support. Checks can be addressed to Local Media Foundation (memo: “JS Community Journalism”) and mailed to P.O. Box 85015, Chicago, IL 60689.

(FOX 9) – Residents in the Uptown neighborhood said they are frustrated and scared after a group of teenagers broke into their apartment building and caused chaos over the weekend.

Tenants describe chaotic scene at Uptown apartment complex

What we know:

Tenants at The Venue on Knox Apartments said a group of teenagers broke through the front door late Saturday night and got inside the building.

“They smashed the front of the building. The entire door was smashed,” said a tenant, who did not want to share his name. “As soon as I saw that was happening, I got out of there.”

Once inside, tenants said the teenagers threw a loud party on the roof.

“Very loud parties. I hear them at night. They have emcees. They’re shouting, barking orders,” the tenant recounted. “I didn’t know where that was coming from. The fact that it was on the rooftop, and I’m on the second floor, like that I could hear it, just shows it’s really out of hand.”

Police said someone pulled the fire alarm, forcing everyone outside in the middle of the night.

After that, a tenant said he was attacked by a group of at least 10 teenagers, causing injuries to his head, arms and body.

City leader, police respond to concerns

Local perspective:

In a statement on Tuesday, City Council Member Elizabeth Shaffer referred to the teenagers as “urban explorers” and said they are trespassing and causing problems in Uptown.

“There have been these cases of ‘urban explorers’ who scale to rooftop patios, are trespassing and creating havoc… Authorities are working together to put in place some strategies to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” she said.

Police said they documented the property damage, but have not made any arrests.

The chaos that unfolded over the weekend came just days after city leaders announced new plans to address crime in the Uptown neighborhood.

Tenants said apartment management has not addressed the incident.

“They haven’t sent us a single email. I thought there would be emails. I thought there would be phone calls to us. They’ve been completely unresponsive,” said a tenant.

Apartment management did not respond to a request for comment.

INDIANAPOLIS — A woman was critically injured in a shooting on the northeast side of Indianapolis Tuesday night.

According to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, officers were called to the 5500 block of East 41st Street around 8:45 p.m. to investigate a shooting. When police arrived at the scene, they located an adult female with injuries consistent with gunshot wounds.

Per IMPD, the victim was transported from the the scene to a local hospital in critical condition. Police reported that hospital staff later provided them with an update that indicated the victim remains in critical condition.

Investigators believe the shooting occurred inside a residence on 41st Street. One shell casing was found in the front yard of that residence near its driveway. Police do not believe that stray shell casing is related to the shooting in any way.

Law enforcement detained a person of interest during its investigation of the shooting. IMPD has not yet provided any of the detainee’s identifying information like sex, age or name.

Police do not believe the shooting poses any ongoing threat to the public. Investigators are, however, still encouraging area residents to call IMPD at (317) 327-3475 or Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at (317) 262-8477 to pass along any information they may have on the shooting.