School Unions Agree to Furloughs, Some Laid-Off Employees Will Return

The will not lose as many employees as had been feared.

Dozens of teachers and classified employees who had been laid off are now coming back next school year, which begins July 1, officials said.

Their return was made possible after their employee unions agreed to another year of pay cuts in the form of five unpaid work furloughs, which saved the district more
than $500,000, according to board minutes.

The district, meanwhile, agreed to spend about $619,000 of one-time federal funds designed to save education jobs, according to board minutes.

“All of this was done to save jobs,” said Gina Potter, assistant superintendent for business services.

The district could not bring back everybody, however.

About half of the 50 mostly part-time classified employees who were laid off last month are expected to return, according to minutes of the board’s June 14 meeting. They include cafeteria and playground assistants, classroom paraprofessionals, media specialists, night custodians and specialized academic behavior assistants, Potter said.

Nine permanent, full-time teaching positions were restored, she said. Included were seven kindergarten-through-sixth grade teachers.

Only four of the 36 full-time-equivalent temporary teaching positions that were cut have been restored, including jobs for two social workers, Potter said. More laid-off employees could be brought back, she said, including kindergarten-through-fifth grade intervention support teachers.

In addition, six full-time teachers retired, she said.

Kindergarten-through-third grade classrooms will increase from 27 to 30 students per teacher as a result of the reduction in the teaching ranks, Potter said.

Potter said the cuts were necessary to address a projected $3.9 million budget deficit.

The district shifted $2.1 million in categorical funds for general operating expenses to help reduce the budget gap. It also saved $1.2 million through job cuts and $594,500 from other reductions, including the furloughs.

The Governing Board last week adopted a 2011-2012 budget that estimates $28.8 million in revenues and $28.78 million in expenditures. Revenues this year were $31.4 million. The district’s funding has shrunk over the past several years as a result of declining enrollment and the state’s budget woes. The student population has declined from about 4,500 to about 3,700 since 1999.

Potter said the district’s budget is based on Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed state budget in May, which counts on a series of tax extensions to increase revenue. Without the extensions, there is a possibility of extensive cuts to public education, she said.

“If they don’t get the tax extensions, we lose $1.2 million,” she said, adding that the
figure is based on calculations. Potter said the district has set aside money in its reserve fund to absorb such a hit.

“We believe this budget is prudent and sound for the next year,” she said.