Perks come with job titleSchool superintendents in Warren County
enjoy a few extras in addition to annual salaries. Warren County's high school superintendents won't be walking away with a $740,000 severance package like the one a Monmouth County superintendent is set to receive. But some of them do get perks such as gym club memberships or car allowances. Overall, though, most local high school districts have limits on payouts for unused vacation and sick days upon a superintendent's departure. And there are no severance bonuses, which accounted for more than $550,000 in the Keansburg package. In response to the Keansburg deal, the state Education Department is reviewing all superintendent contracts. The department will look for any severance bonuses and excessive payments for unused sick and vacation days, Commissioner Lucille Davy said in a recent statement. Phillipsburg is without a superintendent but the contract for most recent superintendent, Gordon Pethick, had no limits on payouts for unused vacation days and allowed payment for up to 100 unused sick days. The superintendent was paid at his full daily rate of almost $600 for each unused day. When Pethick left the district in January after the board declined to renew his contract, he was paid $59,997 for his unused sick days and $20,392 for his unused vacation days. A state law as of March 2007 requires any new superintendent contracts to limit sick day payouts to $15,000. "We'll certainly conform to whatever the new laws are," school board President Paul Rummerfield said. "I think it's about time they tackle this with superintendents walking away with huge chunks of money when they retire." Pethick said he believes other Phillipsburg administrators have similar deals. He said he thought it would be fairer to compare his contract to other Abbott district superintendents. Many collective bargaining agreements for teachers also contain provisions that allow unused sick and vacation days to be cashed out. But the balance of Warren County high school districts have limits on their vacation and sick day payouts for superintendents. Hackettstown has the lowest sick day payout maximum at $7,500, and Warren County Technical School has the highest at $15,000. Warren Hills Regional High School doesn't have a maximum but pays only $65 per unused sick day. Longtime Superintendent Peter Merluzzi has 125 unused sick days, or a payout of $8,125. "I won't hit the $15,000 they're talking about even if I stay a few more years," said Merluzzi, who doesn't get paid for unused vacation days. "Mine doesn't have a lot of stuff in it because I don't believe in it." Merluzzi does have a couple perks in his contract: a $2,000 annual auto allowance and a $2,000 annual disability plan payment. Auto allowances, disability payments, additional life insurance and annuities are included in some superintendent contracts but not all, said Michael Yaple, spokesman for the New Jersey School Boards Association. More typical perks include cell phones, health benefits, travel reimbursement, tuition reimbursement and money for professional development and education association fees, Yaple said. Hackettstown Superintendent Robert Gratz has several perks in his contract: a $9,578 annual annuity, a $4,572 annual auto allowance and an extra $250 a year for medical expenses not covered by insurance. School board President Bruce Smith said the board would rather pay Gratz's travel expenses all at once instead of paying him every time he uses his car for work. Overall, Smith said, he thought Gratz's perks were fairly minimal. Both his vacation and sick day payouts are strictly capped, Smith said. "(Caps have) been in our radar screen for a long time," Smith said. "That's why I smile with bemusement with what's all going on. Typical of the state, they try to paint everyone with the same brush." Reporter Lynn Olanoff can be reached at 908-475-8044 or by e-mail at lolanoff@express-times.com. |