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PSS to ‘unfurlough’ essential employees
With the funds the Public School System expects to get through the CARES Act, it is working on bringing back a handful of furloughed employees for training for the upcoming school year.
In a phone interview with Education Commissioner Dr. Alfred Ada, he said the PSS administration has decided to bring back essential employees who need to undergo social and emotional training for school year 2020-2021.
The move would have to be approved by the Board of Education. “Hopefully, upon approval of the board, we [can] bring back all the necessary employees, or the essential employees, back up, ‘unfurlough’ them, and begin the social and emotional training in July,” he said.
Essential employees include teacher and instructors, as well as employees who deal with students one-on-one. Ada said they expect over 500 employees.
“As we open the schools, we need put in the forefront the social and emotional learning curriculum that addresses the trauma so our students will be able to understand what’s going on. We need to train over 500 staff and personnel,” he said.
On top of social and emotional training, PSS will also pay teacher’ summer pay through the CARES Act funding.
“We still have to pay our teachers the summer pay, $9 million. We have to pay them throughout the summer. They are all on a 190-day contract and because they were all on admin[istrative] leave, I have to pay that. Their summer pay is part of their contract. If they served this school year, they must be given summer pay. Despite COVID-19 and having to shut down schools, I still need to pay them their summer pay,” he said.
PSS assures employees that their priority is to pay teachers their owed salaries before the summer pay and emotional training for teachers.
“We will take care of all our obligations to our teachers first, and then we will start the training for all our teachers on remote learning,” he said.
PSS is expected to receive over $22 million from the CARES Act.
