Schools
Plum to Recruit Substitute Teachers Through Agency
Plum School Board members say using an agency will draw a larger pool of much-needed substitute employees.
Plum School District will begin using a staffing agency to fill substitute personnel positions.
The school board voted 5-4 to charge Kelly Educational Staffing Services with recruiting substitute employees at Monday's meeting.
Tom McGough, Rose McGuirk, Jeff Russo and Loretta White opposed the decision.
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Staffing employees through the agency will cost the district more money, Russo said, at the chance to drive in a larger pool of workers to guarantee staffing.
According to board member Shane McMasters, the district's hourly or daily rate would be 36 percent what Plum previously paid.
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The school district would not, however, pay for things such as social security and workers compensation insurance.
"Those costs will be incurred by Kelly so we figure the net to the district to be a wash," McMasters.
The board said it currently spends about $300,000 each year for substitutes.
Board member Jeff Russo said the district has been struggling to find enough substitutes to fill vacancies on a day-to-day basis. The day after the Super Bowl, the district had 26 employees off of work, board member Andrew Drake said.
"The goal by going with Kelly is to adequately staff all departments when necessary, which is something we have struggled to do with more traditional methods," McMasters said.
Finding nurse substitutes is of particular concern, board members said.
“We need to have qualified teachers in the classroom, and this is the way to do that,” Drake said.
White said she is also concerned if the agency has enough workers to share between Plum and Pine-Richland, for which the agency currently works.
"I’m not sure we have enough information,” White said.
Current substitute personnel working for the district, excluding furlough employees, must sign up and be staffed through Kelly Educational Staffing Services to continue working for the district.
Furlough employees will continue to work through the district.
While substitutes make $13 an hour through the district, they will make $17 an hour through the agency. Kelly Educational Staffing Services also provides healthcare, 401K and offers training, a company representative said at the meeting.
The agency has three weeks to begin operating for the district. Plum is required to provide a 30-day notice if it decides to dissolve the contract.
