Summit's 29 school crossing guards could see a pay increase, with city officials debating a bump from $25 to $27.22 per shift as more than 4,000 students prepare to head back to class on Tuesday, Sept. 8.

The proposed raise, roughly 8.9%, comes as the city struggles to fill crossing guard positions, Patch reported Saturday. The city's job posting still lists the current rate at $25 per shift, with guards working up to two shifts per day for a maximum of $50.

Supporters of the raise say the cost is modest within Summit's $63 million annual budget and would better compensate workers who stand at intersections to keep children safe, according to TAPinto. The city, led by Mayor Elizabeth Fagan, has struggled to fill all 29 guard positions, adding urgency to the pay discussion weeks before the school year begins.

Even with the proposed increase, Summit's guards would earn well below the statewide average. A guard working two shifts daily for a full 180-day school year would take home roughly $9,800 annually at the new rate. The average crossing guard salary in New Jersey is approximately $32,700 per year, according to salary.com data, though most Summit guards work part-time schedules.

The pay discussion comes amid heightened attention to crossing-guard safety statewide. New Jersey's Target Zero Commission released a 72-page plan in December 2025 aimed at eliminating traffic deaths by 2040, after the state recorded a 14% rise in traffic fatalities in 2024, reaching a 30-year high in pedestrian deaths. Bruce Morlack, a 74-year-old Burlington City crossing guard, was killed on Dec. 6, 2024, while working his post.

The Summit Common Council, which meets at City Hall on Springfield Avenue, has not announced a formal vote date for the pay proposal. The council last met on July 28. School starts Sept. 8, and no vote is yet scheduled.