The Shoreline School District has sent a letter to parents warning them of possible upcoming job actions by the SESPA Union.
The Union has been in negotiations for several months and held an informational demonstration last month to emphasize the situation their members find themselves in. The
Shoreline School District is threatening to cut the hours of these workers and reduce benefits. Meanwhile, administrators in the District have been given substantial raises by the School Board. Supt Walker was given an $8,000 raise and Dep Marcia Harris received a $10,000 raise.
SESPA stands for Shoreline Education Support Professionals Association and is an affiliate of WEA (Washington Education Association). They are the workers who provide
many services to students and the community at their jobs with the district such as Nurses, Crossing Guards, School Secretaries, etc.
The District is claiming that SESPA is planning a "sick out" next week, possibly on Wednesday.
The SESPA Blog does not have any statement as yet about a possible job action being planned.
Of Paramount Importance supports the
SESPA Union in fighting for their members labor rights
and wish them luck and solidarity.
 |
| SESPA workers held a demonstration last month at SSD Headquarters |
______________________________________________
September 15, 2010
TO: Shoreline Parents/Guardians, Community and Staff
FR: Shoreline Public Information Office
RE: Potential School Cancellation
As you may know, the District is currently engaged in the collective bargaining process with the
Shoreline Educational Support Personnel Association (SESPA). This association represents over 300
staff members, including nurses, security monitors,
paraeducators (1-1 student aides), crossing guards,
mobility assistants, office staff and more. Since August 2010 this
process has been facilitated by a
professional mediator provided by Public Employment
Relations Commission (PERC). The next
mediation session is scheduled for September 30, 2010.
It has recently come to the District’s attention that
SESPA leadership is planning a possible district-
wide ‘sick-out’ or other job action for Wednesday,
September 29, or perhaps another date. Although a
job action brings up a number of issues for the district,
our most serious concern is that of student
safety.
We value the contribution of all SESPA employees
to the educational environment of our schools.
Several positions are more difficult to fill with substitutes.
For example, one of the biggest challenges
we face in Shoreline is that of substitute nurse coverage.
Unlike other school districts around us that
rely on “magnet” health sites where specialized
care is provided, Shoreline has a nurse at all schools
during all student hours. This allows most Shoreline students
with serious health related issues to
attend their neighborhood school. Unfortunately, our
model makes it very difficult to cover the absence
of all our nurses. We most likely will not be able to
provide 14 nurse substitutes on the same day.
Another serious concern for Shoreline is the support
for our special needs students who require 1-1
adult support for health and safety reasons. Again,
our ability to obtain qualified substitutes for an
excessive number of absences is a significant challenge.
As a result of our concerns, we feel that there
is a possibility that Shoreline would have to cancel
school if we determine that we cannot adequately
address the supervision, health and safety needs of
all our students. We hope that by providing you with
this advance notice, we will be able to minimize
the inconvenience you will experience IF the District
finds it necessary to cancel school. IF school is
cancelled, the student day will be made-up later
in the calendar.
We apologize for any difficulty that this schedule
change may cause your family. We will keep you
updated with information and District decisions
related to this issue on our website:
www.shorelineschools.org
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