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Iwant2 KeepMyJob
Citizen
Username: Fastfusion
Post Number: 19
Registered: 12-2004
| | Posted on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 9:18 am: | 
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Just heard that 25 custodians are being let go so AraMark can bring in more unqualified people.
Didn't we know this was happening?
Now how can you justify administrators giving them selves merit pay bonuses. (10%)
Time to make cuts in the system from the top too. I think it is time to privatize the Business Administrators offices. Didn't they get us into this 4 million dollar hole?
They do keep on giving themselves raises and adding more personel to thier ranks. |
Iwant2 KeepMyJob
Citizen
Username: Fastfusion
Post Number: 20
Registered: 12-2004
| | Posted on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 11:04 am: |
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BTW............
Why can't we postpone some capital improvements,
Like new boilers and pumps at Tuscan and let the maintenance personnel nurse them thru another winter? I have heard that this one project can cost up to $500,000. I am sure there is other CI work that can postponed to save these Custodial Jobs.
As for my opinion, I would not want strangers replacing the custodians,(who have proven themselves to be safe around children) to be with my High School Aged Daughter. Not after what happened to a female student in SOMS when United Cleaning Services was there. (But that was forgotten huh?) |
Chris Prenovost
Citizen
Username: Chris_prenovost
Post Number: 356
Registered: 7-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 11:56 am: |
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Come on, get serious.
Don't you know how the game is played?
The education bureaucracy needs to pay for their fat raises and fat bonuses. But the state, via s-1701, will only (!) allow them to raise their profligate spending by the rate of inflation, or 3%. So they propose cuts in things near and dear to the taxpayers, such as custodial services or french classes. Anything with real value. While leaving the educracy fat and happy.
This has been going on for the fifteen years I have lived in Maplewood, and it will not change until people get REALLY fed up. And vote some real reformers on to the school board. |
lumpyhead
Citizen
Username: Lumpyhead
Post Number: 1144
Registered: 3-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 2:23 pm: |
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If Horrorshow and a few of his cronies were removed, aside from the cost savings, does anyone think it would matter?
Did Ms. Davenport register her car in NJ yet? |
cbbk
Citizen
Username: Cbbk
Post Number: 13
Registered: 6-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 11:08 pm: |
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It is ridiculous. The custodians do much more than maintenance at our schools. They know our children and watch out for them. What will happen when the rent-a-cleaner starts? Will our children be safe. Will the school property and assets stay within the district?
lumpyhead, Ms. Davenport's car is still not registered in NJ.
Ms. Davenport's car is still not registered in Jersey yet. |
cody
Citizen
Username: Cody
Post Number: 672
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Friday, February 25, 2005 - 7:05 am: |
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I know that the custodians at Tuscan have always done so much more than what the job description calls for; they've come in early when weather conditions were bad, they've always been there supporting the school and the staff and watching out for the students. They know the students and the kids know them and respect them.
Our District pays good money to speakers like Ron Ferguson and Pedro Noguera and Rick LaVoie who come and talk about how important it is to have schools where everyone works together for the good of the school and where everyone's focus is on best supporting all the students and establishing personal relationships with children and their families. It saddens me to see that our custodians, many of whom do this, many of whom take the time to talk to a child having a difficult day or encourage a child to do his or her best are being axed, to be replaced by people hired by the day. What guarantee do we have that these outside people will have the best interests of the children at heart? And what does this say to our staff about going above and beyond what their job requirements call for? Why should they bother if their contributions are going to be totally overlooked? You can't say you want a school system with a heart and then rip the system apart periodically. This year, the proposal is to outsource the custodians; next year it might be the nurses, or the Child Study Teams, or the Instructional Aides.
Trying to motivate people to work harder and smarter is difficult if they don't think they are being treated in an appropriately reciprocal fashion. |
Southorangemom
Citizen
Username: Southorangemom
Post Number: 173
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Friday, February 25, 2005 - 9:27 am: |
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I couldn't agree more, Cody.
Outsourcing sounds reasonable on paper but rarely works in real life.
The custodians are part of the teaching community. Their jobs should be saved.
SouthOrangeMom |
Iwant2 KeepMyJob
Citizen
Username: Fastfusion
Post Number: 21
Registered: 12-2004
| | Posted on Friday, February 25, 2005 - 9:49 am: |
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10 years ago when Richard Rosenburg was the Business Administrator the Board of Ed was a really nice place to work.
As soon as he left the threats of privatization started.
The atmosphere of doom and gloom has steadily become worse to the point everyone in the support positions are constantly worried about loosing their jobs. Even some supervisors constantly remind them that their jobs are going to be subbed out. This is being used as a threat that if they don't play ball they will be next on the hit list. The maintenance department employees hear this every day.
Now you need to understand that the Board of Ed at the time of their employment told the maintenance employees that one of the conditions of employment was that they had to use their own vehicles for work.(the board will deny this when asked) One person that I spoke to maintains a work vehicle with commercial insurance stocked with his own equipment(tools). His cost out of pocket is 6,000 dollars a year plus the cost of gasoline, vehicle maintenance and repairs. The board only refunds .36 cents a mile and an additional $600 per yr. for insurance reimbursement which is taxed. There are 6 other maintenance men that do this also.
How is that for dedication?
Know any Administrators or Supervisors that do this? (NO)
There is no other school district in NJ that this happens in. The Maintenance and Custodial staff does things like this everyday. Does anyone think that a cleaning person working for Aramark, Marriott or Sodexo would do these things?
If the Board of Education members and the administration were true professionals they would stop crushing the morale of these dedicated people and stop ignoring the sacrifices the support staff makes. It is an unbalanced system where the people on top crush the ones below in order to fill their pockets with more. The community needs to get involved now to save these jobs.
Every one needs to understand that you are not just getting a person that pushes a broom but a true loyal employee that interacts with Principals, Teachers and Parents. Someone who feels responsible for the safety of OUR children and OUR buildings. All of the Custodians and Maintenance persons question conditions that they feel are unusual or dangerous at our schools. The private cleaning people will not.
The community gets so much more for their money when our employees are true BOE employees. It seems like every time the Administration increases their salary and adds more Assistants to their ranks, support employees and their families at the bottom wind up on unemployment.
How in hell did they ever justify the 10% Merit Pay and raises they took?
If this Board of Education was an airplane we would be looking for new pilots now..........
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Dad23
Citizen
Username: Dad23
Post Number: 68
Registered: 8-2003
| | Posted on Friday, February 25, 2005 - 10:02 am: |
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Cody,
On the money. Dr. H talks "community" and "diversity" but cuts anything and anyone to save Davenport. |
CageyD
Citizen
Username: Cageyd
Post Number: 235
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Friday, February 25, 2005 - 3:40 pm: |
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Can something radical be done, like stop paying the bloated salaries of administrators? I imagine there would be a breach of contract battle but at least they would be out of our hair. I know I sound desperate and crazy but I am just having a fed up moment.
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tulip
Citizen
Username: Braveheart
Post Number: 2051
Registered: 3-2004
| | Posted on Saturday, February 26, 2005 - 7:56 pm: |
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I hope Bob at the Admin Building keeps his job. He's a wonderful guy!! |
HobGobblin
Citizen
Username: Hobgobblin
Post Number: 3
Registered: 2-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, February 27, 2005 - 9:25 pm: |
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Way to go IWant2 KeepMyJob,,,
I could blow a lot of whistles here.....
I agree, ever since Dick left this place has gone downhill. Blame the Board of Ed Members for putting the wrong people in charge of our hard earned tax dollars.
They should call back Dick as a Consultant and hire Pro's just like you said.
The custodians should find new jobs now and leave this Board of Ed ASAP.
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Lee Sherman
Citizen
Username: Lee_ann
Post Number: 1
Registered: 2-2005
| | Posted on Wednesday, March 2, 2005 - 10:26 am: |
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Its my understanding that the district is to be blamed for custodians losing their jobs because they didn't do a good job themselves. Read the News-Record article dated Sept.16,2004, where Karla Milanette stated that the custodians are understaffed, untrained and underequipped. They did the best they could with what was provided to them. Ever heard of attrition? |
SOMSD Watcher
Citizen
Username: Somsd_watcher
Post Number: 4
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, March 3, 2005 - 3:50 pm: |
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What you need to ask is why we are paying outside contractors to do work that the maintenance personnel can do. For example, why are we paying to have toilets snaked or painting of hallways at over $100.00/hour. Does this make sense? Eliminating contractors and having the maintenance men do work seems more logical. What do the custodians do on the weekend when they are covering for sports? Couldn't they paint or change bulbs? |
Iwant2 KeepMyJob
Supporter
Username: Fastfusion
Post Number: 30
Registered: 12-2004
| | Posted on Monday, March 14, 2005 - 7:05 pm: |
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After speaking to SOMEA I was informed that only 1 of 12 AraMark employee's were finger printed and/or background checked. I was also informed that whom ever is responsible for putting these Aramark employee's in our school system is in violation of NJ Law.
So who do we call to report this so we can keep these unchecked persons out of our schools?
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