More layoffs, furloughs coming for Puyallup School District staff who can’t work remotely
The Puyallup School District is considering layoffs and furloughs for staff who are unable to work while school is remote.
The school board unanimously voted Aug. 17 to allow Superintendent John Polm to “take such action as is necessary to restructure, reorganize and/or reduce classified support staffing positions and programs that will not, or likely will not be utilized during a period of distance learning,” the resolution stated.
President Kathy Yang told The Puyallup Herald the district is trying to avoid layoffs and opting for furloughs as much as possible.
“We are looking at every employment group and saying ‘How much can we retain?’” Yang said. “We can’t have people on payroll who don’t have a job to do. But we recognize it’s very sensitive to do this in this trying time for everyone.”
Those who are furloughed will receive benefits through the school district and be able to apply for unemployment. They would return to the district payroll when students return to school, Yang said.
The district does not have a target amount of funding to save, nor do they have an idea of how many staff will be laid off or furloughed.
The school board president expects that decisions will be reached before the beginning of the school year.
Karen McNamara, president of the Puyallup Education Association, said as of now, there haven’t been any teacher reductions, but there have been furloughs for “classified positions,” which include paraeducators, bus drivers and cafeteria workers.
PSD’s financial strain
The COVID-19 pandemic has been costly for the district. Responding to the virus while educating children has cost the district nearly $8.4 million, including the following:
Disinfecting supplies (hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, thermometers, disinfectant sprayers) - $176,000
Personal protective equipment (face masks, safety gloves, signage, office shields) - $215,000
Staff (required COVID-19 coordinators, health assistants, custodial staff, childcare workers) - $2.1 million
Distance learning (K-3 computers and accessories, hotspots, reopening schools curriculum planning and development) - $3.2 million
Almost 680,000 meals have been provided to children by the district -$2.7 million
But the financial strain predates the pandemic.
In February, the district cut a total of nine positions at the central administration office. Executive positions like the chief communications and arts officer and the chief academic officer were included in the layoffs.
Funding has been a struggle for the Puyallup School District. Ninety-two percent of Washington school districts get more state and local funding per pupil than Puyallup, a study done by the League of Education Voters said.
The school board voted this month to put a tax measure on November ballots. The levy measure asks for an additional $0.76 per $1,000 of assessed property value. These supplemental funds would be allocated to pay for staff, extracurricular activities and upkeep of school grounds, the school district said.
If approved, Puyallup School District property owners would pay $4.32 per $1,000 of assessed property value.
Even with the additional funds, school district taxes for Puyallup would be lower than other Pierce County school districts, which vary from Sumner-Bonney Lake’s $5.38 per $1,000 of assessed property value to Orting’s $4.82.
