Dear Colleague,
On behalf of the
As we face the recovery process, we find ourselves making many sacrifices to keep our public school system moving forward. Please read carefully the letter that you received from Superintendent Gayle Sloan.
Where we are now.
* The St. Tammany Federation of Teachers and School Employees contract provisions for involuntary transfer (section
* The Federation will be lobbying for financial relief from a proposed disaster recovery bill in congress.
* The Superintendent and the School Board are making cuts to the System general fund budget.
* The School Board will be exploring short and long-term loan options.
* The School Board is offering early retirement incentives for certificated employees ($6,000). Since we have had many questions concerning this issue a flyer to help answer them will be placed in your box.
The Superintendent believes that by early December we will have a clearer financial picture. The Superintendent will go to the Board with recommendations concerning the general fund and any possible displacement status of the workforce. When the date is set, please attend this School Board meeting and feel free to give your input.
The facts about reductions in the workforce as it stands today.
* Working to save jobs and benefits…no employee lost salary or benefits first semester.
* At this time it is not certain that there will be any reduction in force second semester.
* The Federation has worked with the Superintendent and administration to draft provisions that will be followed if a decrease in personnel must take place next semester.
* There is little or no overstaffing among noncertificated employees at this time.
* If a reduction in force becomes necessary next semester, those most likely affected would be temporary teachers hired for positions that became available after the 2005 Job Fair.
* Tenured teachers are very unlikely to be affected except in rare certification cases if a reduction in force becomes necessary.
Through the collective bargaining process the Federation and administration has spent many hours developing a plan that outlines steps that will be taken to save jobs…avoid reduction in force and states the manner which reduction in force will be implemented if it becomes necessary. The School Board adopted the plan
The most recent storms have left our hearts very sore, weather we had trees, water or neither, Katrina or Rita had an impact on our lives. We are all a part of the education family. Thank you for all that you do.
In unity,
Elsie Burkhalter, President
