San Francisco public schools may avoid worst-case-scenario layoffs because hundreds of employees are expected to retire early.
San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Maria Su said the buyout plan has met its goal, sparing the prospect of axing more than 800 jobs.
“I am really glad to share that we have received overwhelming positive interest in the early retirement option that we have presented to our staff,” Su said Tuesday at a press conference. “We have successfully met our target for participation.”
The plan was introduced late last year with a deadline of mid-February. It offers a one-time cash incentive of 60% of annual pay to employees older than 55 who have worked for the district for at least five years if they choose to retire by the end of the current school year in June. The plan was offered to teachers, aides, principals, and central office staff.
Su said more than 300 employees signed up.
The district on Friday announced that it was targeting 837 positions for cuts, but the actual number may be around 500. Under California Department of Education guidelines, the district must trim 10% of its staff to save $113 million, about 10% of its annual budget.
Frank Lara, vice president of United Educators of San Francisco, described the early retirement offer as a “bittersweet victory,” as it will reduce the number of layoffs but will mean the exit of some of the most dedicated and experienced employees.
“It continues to raise the question of what type of quality education we are talking about,” he said.
Su said the district will work with a consulting firm to review the list of employees who signed up for early retirement. Some of them, such as principals, will need to be replaced.
The Board of Education will vote Tuesday night on approving the preliminary layoff notices, which will go out to affected employees in the next few weeks. The final decision about layoffs will be made in May.
Su plans to present in mid-March an interim budget report that will include information about layoffs and early retirements.
Meanwhile, SFUSD Board of Education President Phil Kim shared that there are nearly 700 more transitional kindergarten applications and 150 more kindergarten applications for next year than this one.
“This is great news,” Kim said. “This shows the growing confidence of families choosing SFUSD.”