By HEATHER CATHLEEN COX
Staff Writer
reporter@sbnewspaper.com
The San Benito Consolidated Independent School District’s Board of Trustees met on Tuesday, December 11, to clarify a resolution previously passed which awarded a one-time retention incentive of $1,000 to qualifying district employees.
“It’s still the same resolution (previously passed), the board just clarified who would qualify and who wouldn’t,” said Superintendent of Schools Antonio G. Limón. Some qualifying factors include: Certain employees of the district who work for the district at least 20 hours per week, and employees who have been employed from September 1, 2011, to December 1, 2012, said Limón.
School Board Trustee Oscar Medrano said that the board received a “legal opinion from our school board attorney…saying that (anyone working) here in the year that put in the amount of hours required in order to be considered for the incentive could receive the incentive.”
“Some security guards work over 30 hours, or over 25,” said the superintendent. “If they work over 20 hours, they qualify for the resolution.” This means part-time security guards and all qualifying part-time paraprofessionals within the district will receive the $1,000 incentive.
Of over 100 security guard positions currently filled within the district, the superintendent stated that only around 10 are considered full-time employees. The others have a title of “sub-security,” the title which previously kept them from being considered eligible to receive the incentive.
Limón said, “It was never an oversight,” that the security guards did not receive the incentive initially. He added, “In our eyes, those employees were not full-time employees, but according to the attorney, they do qualify if they work over 20 hours (per week).”
Regarding the security guard hiring process and filling full-time positions which are currently available but frozen within the district, Limón said, “We’re (superintendent and school board members) still planning to discuss that in January or February.”
The superintendent explained that the board will consider removing the prefix “sub” (short for substitute) before certain positions such as “sub-security, sub-bus drivers. We’re recommending that the board hire them as full-time employees, and the sub-level would only be for those working fewer than 20 hours.”
Limón said, “We need to get papers together to present to the board and evaluate what cost this will involve if we make this change.”
Medrano said that he was happy to approve this motion. “This is a way of saying ‘Thank you,’ to everyone who works hard for the district,” Medrano said.
Medrano further remarked that the board voted unanimously to make this consideration for an amendment to qualifications for receiving this holiday one-time incentive. The trustee said, “It was the right decision to include them.”
Read this story in the Dec. 16 edition of the San Benito News, or subscribe to our E-Edition by clicking here.
Recent Comments