School Board Calls for 5,000 Layoffs
Updated 7:15 PM PDT, Tue, Dec 8, 2009
A showdown between the Los Angeles Unified School District Board and the teachers union was pushed to the limit Tuesday, with passage of a budget plan calling for massive layoffs over the next two years. The board gave teachers one option to avoid the cuts: a pay cut of nearly 12 percent.
About 300 protesters outside the school board office chanted, "Enough is enough," as the budget gained passage.
Analysts say the average class size in LAUSD schools would jump from 24 to 29 students because of the cuts.
The plan that was approved Tuesday would cut 5,000 jobs by 2011. About 1,400 of those jobs would belong to teachers. That follows the layoff of 2,000 teachers during the current school year.
School officials say they need to save about $1.2 billion to balance their budget, and their new budget plan would do the job.
Tuesday's vote will put pressure on United Teachers Los Angeles to seriously consider a plan that would save jobs by putting school employees on periodic work furloughs. That plan has been on the table for months, but now there may be new urgency to consider its impact. The question may be, which plan would be less painful for employees, and for students.
First Published: Dec 8, 2009 5:26 PM PDT
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