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TAs say District 128 used temp agency, paid higher rates and violated ESP contract
Summary
Several educational support personnel (TAs) and tutors told the board that the district outsourced paraprofessional positions to Delta t Group Incorporated at higher rates, which they say breaches the ESP collective bargaining agreement and hurts morale and retention
Paraprofessionals and educational support staff told the District 128 Board of Education on Sept. 29 that the district’s use of a temp agency to fill Teaching Assistant (TA) roles violates the district’s ESP collective bargaining agreement and undercuts long-term staff.
Why it matters: TAs and other educational support personnel provide legally mandated services for students with special needs and vulnerable learners. Staffing shortfalls and contract disputes can affect student services and district labor relations.
Several current employees described the situation in personal terms. Jill Giovannetti, a TA in Libertyville High School’s special services department, said the district “refuses to pay us a competitive wage” and then “decided to use a temp agency to fill vacant positions. This is in direct violation of the ESP union contract, which includes TAs as members.” Giovannetti said some temps are being offered pay up to 30% higher than the starting rate for district-employed TAs.
Lena Scolacci, a Vernon Hills math tutor, said a public posting by Delta t Group Incorporated for paraprofessionals appeared Aug. 7 and that the district later posted jobs on its site. Scolacci told trustees the temp agency’s starting rate of “up to $27 an hour” is “31% higher than the starting rate that was negotiated in good faith” and “15% higher than my current rate.” She and other speakers called the move “demoralizing” and asked the board to “take immediate steps to correct this and recommit to supporting the people who show up every day.”
Speakers asked the board to follow the contract language that names the union “sole and exclusive bargaining agent” for classified educational support personnel and to stop outsourcing union-protected work.
Board response and next steps: Board members acknowledged the comments; the Sept. 29 meeting included no recorded vote changing hiring practices or the contract. Trustees later approved routine employment items during the consent and action portions of the agenda, but speakers asked the board to address the contract concern directly with administration and legal counsel.
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