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Paso Robles teachers’ paychecks slashed

March 23, 2012

By DANIEL BLACKURN

Teachers in the Paso Robles School District will absorb a big paycheck hit this summer after agreeing to help balance the district’s stressed budget.

Teachers’ union president Jim Lynette said a cut of 9.72 percent over the next two years will help schools continue to operate through 2014. Individual teachers will give up several thousand dollars from their last three paychecks of the school year.

“The coming months will be extremely difficult for our membership and their families,” Lynett said. “This year’s pay cut is retroactive to the beginning of the school year.”

Each teacher will lose $750 to $900 from their last three checks, he said.

No administrative positions are to be cut, according to current plans, but teachers’ ranks will shrink by nearly 20 percent. Lynett said 33 district teachers have been laid off, and 28 full or part time temporary positions have been eliminated.

A budget shortage of $1.59 million created the emergency, according to district officials, and it came as a surprise after the unveiling of the district’s current $55 million spending plan.

“I don;t get it,” said Paso Robles High School history teacher Robert Skinner. “They (administrators) almost drive the district into bankruptcy, yet teachers get the layoff notices.”


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I have a student in the High School that was told last Friday by two different teachers that there would be furlow days starting after they come back from Spring Break. Is this still the case or are the salary cuts going to take care of the budget problem? I was shocked when I was told that the school was thinking about only being in session Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I am hoping for the sake of my childs education that the furlows don’t happen.


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school board votes on it tomorrow night.


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Streets, roads and paying a quarter of a million dollars to somebody who simply quit their job is more important than educating students in Paso Robles….


I thought everbody knew that!


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How did you come to that conclusion? PR city and PR school district are two separate entities. Are you suggesting that taxpayers give the PRUSD $1.3 million so that teachers don’t have to take a pay cut?

I hope not.


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I came to that conclusion based on the fact that ALL the MONEY that is NOT there to pay for a proper education and the streets and roads and hush money ALSO comes from the same SOURCE… the TAXPAYERS of Paso Robles!


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39 million dollars will bring us even with Beverly Hills.


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Well folks, chalk this up to our liberal state legislators. Our liberal (and i mean democrat) legislators have given the Air Resources board free reign to do what they please. The operating budget is close to 1 billion per year. That’s enough to pay 1500 teaches a year. Now all small business with older diesel trucks must replace them by Jan 2015 with 2010 models or greater or face huge fines. This going to ruin 1000’s and 1000’s of small business who pay taxes that go to school districts. So next time you see that liberal democrat walking down the street, thank them for the huge spending mess the state government is in. These meaningless programs and wasteful programs are killing this state. I feel sorry for the teachers. I would like to take the $750 dollars I pay each year to the local air district run by the crook Larry Allen and give it to the Paso School district instead of some yuppie shining a seat with his or her rear end.


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That’s crony capitalism at work. Kinda neat!


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It can’t be crony capitalism, since the democrats have been in control for decades and we are told only republicans practice cronyism, right??


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Ya, those damn liberals that created the California Air Resources Board! (Ronald Reagan)


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Is it a fact the the administrators will not take a similar pay cut?


Remember, his is very, very hard and expensive to fire a government worker. As such, the district administrators will probably not be fired.


It came down to this: teachers take a pay cut or let the State take over the district.


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All employees will get same pay cut. It came down to…3-4 million needs to be cut or funds need to be found. Admin chose to cut pay rather than trim fat. Look at the costs of testing, teaching to the test, curriculum for teaching to the test, employees hired to ensure teaching to the test, admin. hired to analyze data from teaching to the test, conferences attended to learn “new strategies” for teaching to the test, outside consultants hired to train “new strategies” and you can save quite a bit more than what 6% accomplished. Cut the fat. Make the principal do all of the above. Do not give tenure to teachers who can’t handle the rigors of the job. What we need are strong administrators, fewer administrators, a vision that will be followed. Teachers will follow. Cutting Administrative bloat and the testing industry will save so much more.


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