Friday, June 25, 2004
The combined service of employees planning to retire is more than 300 years.
By SHERRI L. SHAULIS
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
NILES -- The school board accepted letters of resignation from 16 nonteaching staff members, 15 of whom qualify for a retirement incentive bonus.
Superintendent Patrick N. Guliano explained during Thursday's board meeting that the final employee -- Carole J. Jones, who serves as the cafeteria supervisor for the district -- is considered administration and is not a member of the Ohio Association of Public School Employees Local 365 union, and therefore is not eligible for the bonus.
The others, however, will receive a one-time payout based on the number of hours they work each week as well as their salary.
In a two-year pact reached between the board and the union earlier this year, union members with at least 10 continuous years of service and who are eligible to retire by Sept. 1, 2004, or June 30, 2005, were eligible for the bonus. The agreement also stipulated that at least four employees agree to the terms and submit their letters of resignation by a June 15 deadline.
Payout
The bonus -- which is different for each employee -- is a percentage of the difference between the highest and lowest salary for each job classification, and will be prorated for employees who work fewer than 40 hours each week.
Because 15 workers -- including cafeteria workers, bus drivers and secretaries -- participated, the payout percentage will be 115 percent.
Guliano said the combined service of those on the list is more than 300 years.
The agreement between the union and the board was a cost-cutting measure similar to a deal struck last year between the board and the teachers union. The bonus program allows the district to cut staff through attrition and avoid layoffs.
It's one of many steps taken by the board to keep the financially strapped district out of state-imposed fiscal emergency status.
slshaulis@vindy.com