There has been a battle going on between the Marlboro K-8 School District Board of Education and three units of employees: the instructional aides, bus drivers and bus attendants.
The superintendent, assistant superintendent and business administrator, collectively, make more than a half-million dollars. They along with the principals, assistant principals and administrators earn excellent salaries and receive family health benefits.
The teachers have a contract for approximately twoand a-half years more that includes contracted raises and family benefits.
On Feb. 16, the Marlboro Township Education Association (MTEA) called a last-minute meeting to present the instructional aides, school bus drivers and bus attendants with an agreement that had to be voted on immediately after presentation.
They were informed that they would be outsourced if they did not accept the following: a cut in salary of 20 to 30 percent and a loss in family health benefits.
Most of these people earn from $19,000 to $30,000 a year. A person making $19,000 would be reduced to approximately $12,000. Then, when you take away about $1,000 each month over a 10- month pay period for family health benefits, that employee would earn $2,000 for the year. How can people continue to work for our community?
If times are hard, why is the allocation of dollars so very top heavy? Why do the administrators simply freeze their salaries?
Marlboro K-8 Superintendent of Schools David Abbott makes over $189,000 and has family coverage and lovely perks. Why do all the administrators get to keep their salaries and family health benefits? Is that the way to run a public business? Dr. Abbott sits on high while the support staff see the children and work with them every school day. It is not that there is not enough money in the budget for it to be balanced, it is the allocation of that money.
President Harry Truman once said, “The buck stops here.” If Dr. Abbott really cares about the people who work for the board and cares about the people in the community, he would not simply take a salary freeze, he would also take a salary cut.
He has said it is illegal for him to take a pay cut. We wonder if that is true. But if it is illegal, we propose another way to help him give back. An account can be set up for all administrative employees to take 10 percent of their salaries and put it back into the pocket of the board to balance the budget.
We need a balanced budget that does not come off the backs of just three units of workers. Most of the bus drivers, bus attendants and instructional aides are longtime workers and local residents.
If the MTEA cared about its support staff members, who pay their share of union dues, they would ask all their members to make the same sacrifices.
The burden of a balanced budget should not fall on the shoulders of the people who make the least. Why does the money have to come from only these three units? If we are all a family, and that is the way we have been described, (why) would you ask some to give up so much and others to give up so little?
Linda Homler
Carol Cole
Freehold Township