Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Personnel Layoffs topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Moreland trustees approve notices for potential layoffs, set seniority tie-breaks
Summary
Trustees approved resolutions to notify certificated and classified staff of potential reductions in force, adopted seniority/tie-break criteria and set notification to meet statutory deadlines. The district cited enrollment declines of about 1,000 students over five years as the cause.
The Moreland School District Board of Trustees on a series of votes approved resolutions authorizing notification of potential reductions in force for certificated and classified employees and adopted seniority tie-breaking criteria to be used if two employees share the same hire date.
A district representative told the board the actions respond to program needs and budget realities after a decline of roughly 1,000 students compared with five years ago. "We have 1,000 students less than we had 5 years ago," the district representative said while explaining the need to align staffing with enrollment and program changes.
The board approved Resolution 6-25-26, which authorizes reductions in particular certificated services next school year, and Resolution 5-25-26 for classified staff reductions. The superintendent's office said some reductions may be partial hours rather than full positions, noted common practice for seasonal or duty-based reductions (for example, bus duty assignments), and explained that classified positions can involve bumping chains that require additional notices.
Trustees also approved the district's order of tie-breaking criteria when two employees share identical hire dates. The criteria discussed include contract provisions, bilingual certification, special-education psychology credentials, breadth of credentials and professional preparation/advanced degree as a later tiebreaker. Board members asked clarifying questions about counting years of experience outside Moreland and how that would be applied.
District staff said they must notify affected employees by the statutory deadline of March 15; because a non-workday affects the calendar this year, the district plans to provide notices on March 12. Staff also said that if openings occur later in the year, employees laid off could be rehired.
Board members expressed regret at the necessity of the actions and emphasized attempts to pursue other revenue or program alternatives before arriving at layoffs. The motions carried without recorded opposition.
The actions are procedural notifications to comply with legal timelines; no specific names or individual terminations were recorded in the meeting minutes.
