Unions save seven school jobs

OXFORD HILLS — Seven jobs in SAD 17 which were on the chopping block because of cutbacks in state aid have been saved by union workers who gave back more than $70,000 in earned income.

Superintendent Dr. Mark Eastman announced at Monday's school board meeting that 363 members of the Oxford Hills Education Association, which represents most SAD 17 labor unions, agreed to return $70,467 to the district in the form of tax-deductible donations.

"It's really fantastic the way the union members have pulled together to keep these jobs from being eliminated," said Eastman.  "We are just thrilled at the response."

The seven jobs — which included an after-school librarian, a middle school/high school custodian, two literacy ed techs, the high school intervention coordinator, a middle school special ed tech, and a high school study hall monitor — were up for elimination in order to account for $502,080 carved from state general purpose aid during SAD 17's current budget cycle.

In November, Gov. John Baldacci ordered an $80 million curtailment, which included $27 to be cut from the Department of Education (DOE), in order to stave off the impact of a $146 million shortfall in state revenues.

That number grew to $166 million by January when state legislature massaged the curtailment (a delay in state spending) into actual cuts.  According to State Rep. Sawin Millett (R- Waterford), the $20 million difference was due to the discovery that state budgeters had erroneously counted some forms of revenue twice, making the budget shortfall appear smaller than it really was.

The difference did not alter the reduction to SAD 17's promised aid, however.  By the time the legislature voted on the amended cuts, DOE already had accounted for its share by adjusting the mill rate towns must pay in order to receive state aid. 

In December, the school board voted in $402,000 worth of cuts, leaving $100,000 to deal with later, once the legislature convened, in case the cut was amended in any way.

When it wasn't, Eastman calculated that one furlough day (closing all schools for one day, without pay to the staff) would cover the remaining $100,000 still to be cut.

The December cut included a savings of $11,552 realized when administrators, middle managers and supervisors stepped forward to offer a furlough day of their own.

However, due to existing contracts, Eastman did not have the power to simply order the cut.

"The teachers' association, which represents most of our union groups, said they are not comfortable opening up the contract, and all the issues related to that," said Eastman.

Doing so, Eastman added later, would have meant renegotiating the teachers' current contract for "impact bargaining."

Instead, Eastman and Waterford grade 5 teacher James Thorton, acting as president of the Oxford Hills Education Association, hammered out a compromise.

In a letter that went out to union employees January 15, Eastman and Thorton offered a "voluntary give back."

Union members were asked to either take a one-day unpaid leave of absence on June 19 (a non-class workshop day), or to work that day and make a tax-deductible donation to the district equal to their individual per diem rate of pay.

An option was provided to have any donation divided over the remaining weeks of the fiscal year and withheld from paychecks.  Depending on where each person falls on the salary scale, Eastman said, that donation could fall between $16 and $20 per week.

Employees were reminded that compliance is voluntary.  It was also made clear that the lost day would not count against accumulated time to be credited toward retirement benefits.

"For each $10,000 of voluntary reductions, we will be able to save one position," read the Eastman/Thorton letter.  That sum equaled the average rate of pay for each of the at-risk positions between January and June.

Eastman told budget committee members that all seven position could be saved if union members give up time, or otherwise made donations, equal to $70,000.

As of Monday, the union had come through, offering up donations of $70,467 — roughly equal to $194 per person participating in the "give-back."

A joint letter, issued February 6, by Eastman and Thorton, said any additional funds donated by union members will be used to offset additional curtailments in the FY 2010 school budget.  Already, in reaction to expected state cutbacks, Eastman has ordered all department heads to bring him spending plans for next year that fall 10 percent below current budgets.

On Monday, the school board approved a budget committee recommendation for finding the final $30,000 needed to meet the Governor's curtailment order.

Those cuts include:

• Not filling an open a special ed tech job at Rowe Elementary — saving $7,720.

• Not filling custodian sick days with substitutes — saving $2,500.

• Using a federal grant for staff development work at Oxford Elementary, meaning the district will not have to use local money for training mandated by low test scores — saving $10,114.

• Eliminating K-5 "pullouts" (when teachers in a grade level leave class for staff development work, and are replaced for the afternoon with substitutes) — saving $3,673.

Eastman also has ordered freezes in SAD 17 on hiring and spending.

Calls placed to Thorton requesting comment were not returned.