Unions, teachers urge Dearborn board to drop attendance from surplus and layoff criteria

Dearborn Public Schools Board of Education members heard union leaders, teachers and staff press the district to remove attendance from the formula used to determine surplus and lay off employees, arguing the policy penalizes use of negotiated sick and personal days and disrupts school communities.

At the meeting, union representatives described survey results and frontline workload while teachers and a psychologist offered examples of teachers who said they were moved or feared being moved after using paid leave. Board members and district administrators discussed the policy's history and said they were open to revisiting the criteria through negotiations; no formal vote or policy change was recorded.

The Dearborn Federation of School Employees (DFSE) and the Dearborn Federation of Teachers (DFT) presented staff perspectives. "We take pride in keeping our schools safe and functional," DFSE Vice President Kyle West said, describing the district's maintenance workforce and its workload. Donna Smith, a DFSE trustee and special-education paraprofessional, told the board there are "almost 300 paraprofessionals in Dearborn Public Schools" and described staff commitment to students. DFSE sergeant at arms Angie Lorenzetti said instructional technicians provide targeted support to special-education students.

DFT representative Cathy Martin summarized a membership survey DFT conducted and reported broad pride in the work but mixed perceptions of district leadership. Martin said, among survey respondents, roughly 72–79% felt represented by union leadership, about 64% felt supported by building administration, and that perceptions of central office and the board were lower: "Only 25.9%" felt supported by central office and "just 24.1%" felt the same about the board. Martin said the survey flagged concerns about micromanagement, workload, student behavior and a lack of input on district decisions.

Teachers and staff who addressed the board urged removal of attendance from surplus criteria. "I am here to urge you to remove attendance as a factor in determining surplus and layoff for teachers," Fortson High School English teacher Erin Taber said, and described colleagues who came to work sick to avoid triggering surplus review. School psychologist Mona Mashra said the district should "evaluate our impact, not our sick days," and said the attendance-linked policy disproportionately affected people with health needs and caregivers.

Board members and district administrators traced the policy's background. A district speaker said state law changed in February 2011 to limit use of seniority in layoff decisions and that, in Dearborn, the attendance-based criterion was established as a board policy in February 2013. The speaker said the state law changed again in February 2024; trustees discussed the practical implications but did not adopt new rules at the meeting. The district reiterated that employees who qualify for the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) must meet standard FMLA eligibility to use that protection.

Board and union leaders clarified current contract and policy mechanics. The collective bargaining agreement provides 13 sick days and two personal business days per year (15 days total), a district official said. Under current board policy, attendance becomes a factor for surplus or layoff consideration when an employee has 16 absences over a two-year period; speakers emphasized that the 16-day trigger is a policy criterion, not a contract entitlement. Trustees said the policy was temporarily suppressed during the COVID pandemic and has been invoked more recently as budget and staffing pressures returned.

Trustees acknowledged competing priorities: protecting teachers' health and maintaining instructional consistency for students. One district administrator said substitutes and staffing shortages can reduce instructional quality and that attendance was added historically in part to address those concerns. Multiple trustees and administrators said they were "open minded" to negotiating alternative formulas with union leadership and to reviewing the policy through the board's policy process; none proposed an immediate change on the record.

The board did not take formal action during the meeting. Trustees and union representatives said they will continue discussions through negotiations and board policy review processes.

Looking ahead, speakers said the district and unions expect to continue talks about surplus and layoff criteria. Union leaders asked the board to remove attendance as a factor; trustees and administrators said they will return to the policy committee and negotiation tables to consider alternatives that balance staff well-being and instructional continuity.