By Mark Boshnack
At least one area school district is seeking wage concessions from its staff to balance the budget, according to an administrator.
Administrators from two other districts said they were hopeful that increases in federal and state aid will be enough to prevent such actions.
In order to achieve a 0 percent tax levy hike, the Sharon Springs Central school board has asked staff for a one-year wage freeze to avoid layoffs, said business manager Anthony DiPace. The board felt that in the current economy, the school should not be asking for any additional funds, he said.
Only the teachers union has not agreed to that concession, he said. The two administrators _ DiPace and Superintendent Patterson Green _ nonteachers and confidential managerial staff have agreed to the request, DiPace said.
An answer from the teachers was expected last week, and if one is not received by this Friday, DiPace said, action to cut positions will begin. Three teaching full-time equivalency positions would be cut, and four teaching assistants would go from full to part time, he said.
DiPace said he didn't know what the specific savings would be if cuts are made, but he hoped it would be a "significant" amount of the $255,000 needed to reach the desired savings in the $8.5 million budget.
The freezes, if enacted, would save about $153,000 from the 90-member staff, including 40 teachers, he said. At least $70,000 in additional savings _ from such areas as equipment and material and supplies _ has been identified, he said.
"You can't really make cuts without affecting programs, but we are looking to have the least impact," he said.
The board is using Gov. David Paterson's state aid numbers, which call for about $183,000 less funding than last year.
Schools are still waiting for guidelines on using federal stimulus funds intended for special education and remediation. Those funds, part of two pools of federal funding, are intended to be applied over a 27-month period.
State funding may be restored using the $2.5 billion over two years from the other pool of federal stimulus funds, but DiPace said he did not expect it to be enough to make up the gap or to arrive in time to help. The state budget is due April 1, and lawmakers have expressed optimism it would arrive on time.
Voting on school budgets statewide is May 19.
The Sharon Springs teachers union president, John Walker, did not return a phone message left Wednesday at the school.
However, middle/high school English teacher Jennifer Field said that "everyone wants to help," but not enough information on the budget was available to make an informed decision on the issue.
The wage-freeze consideration may be unusual in this area, according to an Oneonta-based union representative.
"I don't know of any unions in Otsego and Delaware counties that are considering wage freezes," said New York State United Teachers union representative Michael Lynch.
He who works with the Oneonta Teachers Associations and unions in some surrounding districts.
The teachers, through their unions, have worked to get the federal stimulus money for the schools, he said. That has helped the current situation, and members will continue to do what they can.
"People have contracts so they can be sure of what they are going to receive," he said. It makes no sense if "every time there was bump in the economy, employers would be allowed to take something back."
Oneonta Teachers Association president and teacher Tim Nobiling said he couldn't comment on the Sharon Springs situation because he didn't know enough about it.
As a union president, Nobiling said there have been no discussion about layoffs in Oneonta.
"We've worked with the district in the past to try and save money," including joining others in an energy-saving program and increasing usage of generic drugs to save on health care costs, he said.
He was waiting to see what the proposed school budget would call for, but other cost-saving steps could be taken before such "drastic action" is needed.
Superintendents await stimulus news
Oneonta Central School Superintendent Michael Shea said that in discussions with NYSUT, the emphasis has been on the stimulus package helping with the budget. The district is expecting several retirements to also reduce expenses, he said.
Such actions should relieve the "economic stress," he said, but is not sustainable in a weak economy.
"It is hard to tell what the future holds," he said, but reopening contract negotiations is an option if economic challenges continue
At Cherry Valley-Springfield Central School, Superintendent Nicholas Savin said he would want to have a better idea of what federal and state revenues are coming before contemplating a pay freeze.
"We would want to make sure it's really needed," he said.
If the stimulus arrives, the district should be OK, he said. Some staffing cuts are being considered, but most would be reversed if more funding than anticipated is received.
