Teacher aides in the school district object to plan for reduced hours

By Charles Sercombe
In an apparent cost-cutting move, teacher aides, known as paraprofessionals, may soon have the number of hours they work reduced.
And there might be fewer substitute teachers hired for now on.
At this month’s school board meeting, several parapros, as they are also known as, asked the district to reconsider a plan to cut their hours from 32.5 to 27.5 hours per week.
Paraprofessionals are credentialed and work under the supervision of teachers.
The parapros who spoke out said that reducing their hours will cause financial distress.
“Please put yourself in our place,” said one parapro.
Another also stressed the financial impact of losing income: “How can Hamtramck Public Schools leadership take the most from the people that get paid the least?”
It was also pointed out that the district keeps hiring administrative staff with salaries of $80,000 and up.
A number of parapros say that not only are they needed to help out in classrooms, but also monitor hallways, playgrounds, and even help clean up students who have “accidents” in the bathrooms.
“This is a terrible disservice to our students,” said another parapro. “We are part of the community so this is not the time to reduce our hours. We actually deserve a raise.”
The Review asked Interim Superintendent James Larson-Shidler how much the district will save in the cutback, but his only response is that the proposal is under review and that hours have not yet been reduced.
However, at the past board meeting, four parapros were hired at $17.51 per hour for a maximum work week of 27.5 hours. That maximum number of hours has been in effect for at least a year-and-half for new-hires.
According to sources, by reducing the number of hours the employees are not considered fulltime, and thus not eligible for medical benefits.
Posted Nov. 29, 2024