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Saturday, Feb. 06, 2010

Houston school workers’ pay cuts to be spread out

Houston County school officials will spread state-mandated employee pay cuts across the remaining paychecks of the school year, according to a letter Superintendent David Carpenter sent to system employees Friday afternoon.

Gov. Sonny Perdue called on teachers and other state employees to take three more furlough days by June 30.

Houston County has already taken its first furlough day on Jan. 19, shortly after the governor made his announcement.

The adjustments in employee paychecks will begin at the end of this month, Carpenter said.

“Spreading the pay adjustment over as long a period as possible will result in the smallest adjustment in your check. I hope that you agree that this is the best way to handle this state cut,” wrote Carpenter in the letter. “Everybody in the school system works extremely hard. It’s difficult when you have to adjust their pay.

“The majority of the people in the system understand the state doesn’t have the money,” he continued.

Carpenter concluded the letter by saying Houston County schools would ultimately become a better system in the face of economic adversity.

“I commend you for how you have responded in the past to this budget crisis and how I know you will continue to respond in the future. These are times that none of us has seen before. However, we will survive these difficult times and our system will emerge even stronger.”