Banning School Employees Battle More Layoffs
On Friday morning, the California School Employees Association joined with parents and students to fight recent decisions made by the Banning Unified School District.
Erlinda Diaz has worked for the BUSD for 31 years, but this year could be her last.
“I’m a bilingual aide and my position is getting cut,” said Diaz.
BSUD’s budget for next year is down more than $3 million, and is cutting teachers, programs and supplies. More positions will likely follow.
“I love working with kids and now the district tells us, they no longer need us. I don’t believe that the kids don’t need us,” said Diaz.
The CSEA is negotiating with the district, looking for ways to cut the layoffs.
“The initial proposal they put out left most of the cuts on the least paid employees: the classified,” said CSEA advocate Beth Caskie.
The CSEA shot down the original proposal.
People at the rally said the district has made some movement in the right direction, but they don’t think it’s enough to keep the cuts away from the students.
“The district needs to prioritize the cuts they have to make in the interest of the students,” said Caskie.
Parent, Juanita Diaz said the schools spend too much money on food for staff meetings, instead of supplies and salaries.
“Our money is not being spent wisely,” said Diaz.
BUSD’s Human Resources Manager, Craig Newman said that’s not the case.
“Money for that is donated, we don’t spend money on that,” said Newman.
Newman disagrees with those who question district spending and priorities.
“The priority of the district is to educate the students and that takes a lot of money,” said Newman.
Money is something the district doesn’t have. Instead, they have a big problem. Leaders hope shared opinions and negotiations can solve the crisis.
“We’re back to the drawing board. We’ll keep trying,” said Caskie.
District leaders are currently in negotiations with the CSEA. They’ve postponed the layoff announcements until June 30, which gives them more time to agree on ways to save money. One possible solution is furloughs.
