DPS Classified Staff on Strike Due to Pay Error
- Sydney Sarver
- Jan 22, 2024
- 2 min read
After a two hour delay on Wednesday due to weather conditions, many Jordan students’ buses never picked them up, forcing them to either miss school or find a ride. Some teachers shared with the students that remained on campus that there was a Durham Public Schools worker strike and that they were unsure what was going to happen, causing students to speculate about school being canceled in the upcoming days.
This problem started when, last weekend, well over a thousand DPS classified staff learned that they would be receiving significantly less in their next paycheck than they’d been expecting. These workers were overpaid due to a supposedly “accidental” raise, and at first the district was asking for their money back, which was devastating news for many staff relying on a steady income. The DPS classified workers affected include custodial and cafeteria staff, as well as bus mechanics, although the pay of the bus drivers themselves is unaffected.
The pay issue doesn’t directly affect teachers at the moment, but there have been rumors about school at Jordan moving to online if many of these essential workers continue to be absent from their usual positions. There is a board meeting next Thursday (January 25), where hopefully the issue will be addressed.
“When you’re living paycheck to paycheck, having your pay changed and not knowing why or how, or what to do about it is frustrating and kind of demeaning,” said Durham Association of Educators president Symone Kiddoo to WUNC. Kiddoo added that “folks have purchased houses, folks have purchased vehicles… They've made some fairly permanent changes to their lives that now they're having to reconsider.”
*Note: This is a developing story. This post will continue to be updated as the story progresses.
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So sad that this is happening 😔
great article!