A 17 percent increase in health insurance premiums on top of furlough days and a 13-minute time limit on cleaning classrooms has upset a number of Manteca Unified School District custodians.
“What I think is very frustrating for employees is that this (health insurance premium) is on top of concessions they have already given – adjusted their budgets – but now have 17 percent (less) in their budgets,” said District Superintendent Jason Messer. “Maybe we need to shop for less – education is moving away from 100 percent benefits.”
Custodian Chris Crawford said his rent is $1,000 a month, saying he brings home less than that in his monthly pay check.
“Something needs to be done and the union is not backing us,” he said.
Crawford spoke of forgone pay raises and having the two furlough days off when there is work to be done. Work becomes a catch up situation when employees are told to accomplish the same duties, but in less time.
“We are not doing every other day cleaning,” he lamented. He is currently away from his job at Lathrop High due to health complications. “They gave us a one percent raise but with the health insurance going the way it is we are losing money. If I were laid off, I would be making more money.”
He further noted that classified and custodial personnel within the school district were hit the hardest in the district’s budget crunch with all the substitutes in both areas released from their duties.
Crawford said on the first day of school custodians couldn’t turn on the lights or use a vacuum from 2:30 until 6 p.m. because of a limited power-usage agreement with PG&E.
“The table tops need to be sanitized daily, carpets vacuumed, windows washed – not including a rally for a ball game – if we don’t clean the whole campus we are out of work,” he said.
Samria Faria, payroll and employee benefits supervisor explained that the major increase came from Anthem Blue Cross. She explained that Kaiser had a similar increase last year when Pacific Care was dropped because it was felt they were too expensive.
With Kaiser’s “dramatic jump” last year some of the school employees then opted for Anthem Blue Cross, she said.
The premiums that the district shares on a near 50 percent basis with it employees totals an average of $8,300 annually. Benefits for administrative and supervisory personnel are rolled into their salary, she added.
The insurance company selections are made an independent agency, (SVT) Central Valley Trust that secures the options for the employees to make their choices. The majority of employees belong to either Blue Cross or Select Blue Cross.
The Lathrop High custodian further noted that he had been used to act as a campus monitor when the school was short staffed. And he said at football games an overtime employee is hired to support the stadium needs while a grounds worker is allowed to cook hotdogs.
“They had me out there at football games as a runner while another employee was doing my (custodial) route,” he said. “There are things that can be done to make our jobs a little easier. Manteca High School has a formula where they have eight minutes to clean a classroom every other day.”
“What I think is very frustrating for employees is that this (health insurance premium) is on top of concessions they have already given – adjusted their budgets – but now have 17 percent (less) in their budgets,” said District Superintendent Jason Messer. “Maybe we need to shop for less – education is moving away from 100 percent benefits.”
Custodian Chris Crawford said his rent is $1,000 a month, saying he brings home less than that in his monthly pay check.
“Something needs to be done and the union is not backing us,” he said.
Crawford spoke of forgone pay raises and having the two furlough days off when there is work to be done. Work becomes a catch up situation when employees are told to accomplish the same duties, but in less time.
“We are not doing every other day cleaning,” he lamented. He is currently away from his job at Lathrop High due to health complications. “They gave us a one percent raise but with the health insurance going the way it is we are losing money. If I were laid off, I would be making more money.”
He further noted that classified and custodial personnel within the school district were hit the hardest in the district’s budget crunch with all the substitutes in both areas released from their duties.
Crawford said on the first day of school custodians couldn’t turn on the lights or use a vacuum from 2:30 until 6 p.m. because of a limited power-usage agreement with PG&E.
“The table tops need to be sanitized daily, carpets vacuumed, windows washed – not including a rally for a ball game – if we don’t clean the whole campus we are out of work,” he said.
Samria Faria, payroll and employee benefits supervisor explained that the major increase came from Anthem Blue Cross. She explained that Kaiser had a similar increase last year when Pacific Care was dropped because it was felt they were too expensive.
With Kaiser’s “dramatic jump” last year some of the school employees then opted for Anthem Blue Cross, she said.
The premiums that the district shares on a near 50 percent basis with it employees totals an average of $8,300 annually. Benefits for administrative and supervisory personnel are rolled into their salary, she added.
The insurance company selections are made an independent agency, (SVT) Central Valley Trust that secures the options for the employees to make their choices. The majority of employees belong to either Blue Cross or Select Blue Cross.
The Lathrop High custodian further noted that he had been used to act as a campus monitor when the school was short staffed. And he said at football games an overtime employee is hired to support the stadium needs while a grounds worker is allowed to cook hotdogs.
“They had me out there at football games as a runner while another employee was doing my (custodial) route,” he said. “There are things that can be done to make our jobs a little easier. Manteca High School has a formula where they have eight minutes to clean a classroom every other day.”
