Hundreds Of Detroit Teachers Shorted On Paychecks Due To 'Technical Issues'
DETROIT (WWJ) - Some Detroit teachers have been shorted on their paychecks this week while district officials blame a technical glitch.
Detroit Federation of Teachers union president Steve Conn said hundreds of teachers discovered that their checks were short as much as hundreds of dollars, while others found they hadn't been paid at all.
Detroit Public Schools Spokeswoman Michelle Zdrodowski told WWJ Newsradio 950 they're dealing with "a variety of technical issues" that occurred when the district was processing Tuesday's payroll on Monday night.
"It affected a cross-section of DPS employees — teachers includes," Zdrodowski said.
"I don't know the exact number (affected); we're still calculating," she said. "But we've been, you know, working with the coalition of unions and with our employees to resolve the payroll issues as quickly as we can."
Conn says this is not the first time this has happened.
"This is at least the second major payroll problem in that many weeks," he said, in a media release. "And on top of those problems, DPS still owes hundreds of teachers numerous special payments for workshops and earned bonuses."
He blames state-appointed DPS Emergency Manager Darnell Earley.
"The problem is part bureaucratic incompetence and part not caring about the teachers," Conn added, "but the policies of the emergency manager are clearly designed to discourage teachers in hopes that they leave the district, which aids the governor's agenda of dismantling public education in Detroit."
Zdrodowski said they're addressing employees' pay problems on a case-by-case basis as each is brought to their attention. She does, however, dispute Conn's claim that any teacher went entirely unpaid.
"We're confident that we'll have them all addressed between today and Friday," she said.