2010-11 District Budgeting, Calendar, Pay Schedules
At the Orange Unified School Board meeting on December 10, the Board gave preliminary approval to budget reductions for the 2010-11 school year. These items included the following:
Budget ReductionSavings
Restructuring the Elementary Class Size Reduction program to 30:1
$1,250,000
Restructure Custodial Staffing
$900,000
Reduce Administration/Support Staff
$450,000
Eliminate Elementary Instrumental Music program
$385,000
Close Riverdale Elementary
$345,000
Eliminate Elementary Summer School (except Special Ed)
$300,000
Restructure Secondary Summer School
$300,000
Eliminate District Funding for Sports Transportation
$200,000
Eliminate GATE Busing
$107,000
Increase Bus Pass Fees by $60
$60,000
Total
$4,297,000
One additional proposal was included in the recommendations which would require negotiations with OUEA—increasing the High School staff ratio from 32:1 to 33:1, with an expected savings of $480,000.
There were no recommendations of any additional salary reductions beyond the continuation of the existing 2% cut, which is tied to a reduction of four non-student days and may remain in place through the 2011-12 school year depending on state funding levels in 2010-11 and 2011-12.
Final action on these budget reductions will occur at a school board meeting in March.
Calendar: At the meeting, the Board was also presented with the 2010-11 school calendar. It includes a teacher starting date of Wednesday, August 18, 2010; students returning on Thursday, August 19; the placement of two budget cut days during in the week of Thanksgiving, which creates a full one-week Thanksgiving Break; continuation of this year’s Winter (3-week) and Spring (2-week) Recess schedule; and the final teacher and student day on Thursday, June 16, 2011.
No decisions have been made regarding the calendar for the 2011-12 school year at this point. The District will be surveying people regarding their thoughts on the longer Winter Recess in the next few weeks. The District’s Calendar Committee will continue discussions regarding the continuation of the current Modified Traditional calendar beyond 2010-11 later in the current school year.
Pay Schedules: OUEA and the District have reached an informal agreement, expected to be officially finalized soon, regarding pay schedules for the 2010-11 school year. Employees who formerly worked on the Single-Track Year Round schedule will receive their pay in eleven (11) installments, from the end of August through the end of June. Those who were on the Traditional calendar will continue to be paid in ten (10) installments, from the end of September to the end of June.
October Payroll and the Pay Reduction Implementation
OUEA has become aware of a miscommunication between the Association and the District regarding the implementation of the negotiated pay reduction related to the reduced work year. This miscommunication has altered the way in which OUEA intended to have the pay reduction implemented for many certificated employees. Clarification regarding what to expect on your October paycheck is included below.
The Issue: Knowing at the time of the tentative agreement that a contract ratification process would extend past the deadline for the September payroll, OUEA believed it had communicated to the District that the Association expected the pay reduction to be balanced over the remaining paychecks (e.g. those formerly on S-track and receiving 12 paychecks per year would see a 2 2/3% reduction on each of their remaining 9 checks, while those on T-track and receiving 10 paychecks per year would receive a 2 2/9% reduction on each of their remaining 9 checks).
Unfortunately it was discovered just prior to the county’s October 22 school district payroll deadline that the understanding of the method to apply the payroll deduction was different. Upon discovery of the misunderstanding, the Association and the District immediately began trying to find ways to address the matter.
The Solution: Agreeing that a one-time 8% reduction for those receiving 12 paychecks per year was an issue, the District was able to alter its payroll at the last minute for those employees. However, there was not enough time before the county deadline to address the impact on 10-month pay employees and they will be receiving a one-time 4% reduction on their October paycheck.
What It Means To You:
If you are a ten-paycheck employee: Your October gross pay will be 4% less than last month’s amount. All subsequent checks (November through June) will be 2% less than last year’s amount.
If you are a twelve-paycheck employee: Your October gross pay will be 2 2/3% less than last month’s amount. All subsequent paychecks (November through June) will be reduced by the same 2 2/3%.
If you are a twelve-paycheck employee who moved over a column this month: Your October gross pay will be reduced by 8%. All subsequent checks (November through June) will be reduced by 2%. (This affects approximately twenty employees district-wide. The District was unable to accomplish both the change in salary and the change in reduction within this one payroll period. These employees should still see no overall reduction in the amount of pay received because the increased salary from the column movement should offset the reduction.)
OUEA apologizes to our members for this confusion and the lack of clarity in its communication with the District in the implementation of the ratified salary reduction agreement. We have learned from this situation and will take steps so that no misunderstandings will occur in the future.