Over the last six weeks, millions of Americans have lost their jobs, and hundreds of thousands of those have been our fellow Louisiana citizens.
As we had predicted, local governments have begun to trim their payrolls, because their tax revenues have been vaporized by shutdowns. School districts, police juries, and cities have furloughed employees.
Have any local politicians volunteered to cut his/her pay? Very few, if any.
In any of the last month’s public meetings we’ve been to, or watched online, never has that subject come up.
City councils? Police jurors? School board members? Judges? District attorneys? Senators? Representatives? Sheriffs?
So when will our “public servants” show they are really willing to share the pain that the people who pay their salaries are now enduring?
Lincoln Parish News Online 
04/15/2020 at 8:00 pm |
We would be interested in how each entity has handled cutting their employees time and/or jobs and whether or not the salaries of top level has been affected???
04/15/2020 at 10:24 pm |
It would definitely show true leadership for the superintendent, school board members, and the inflated staff (with inflated pay) at central office to sacrifice a percentage of their pay to ensure that the salary supplement checks are not reduced. It has also been floating around that they are wanting to start the school year early. If this is the case, teachers should be paid accordingly for the number of days worked (during this time of social distancing, we are still providing services). If a single position is cut, if deductibles are raised, and if salaries or supplements are reduced without those at central office and the board members agreeing to a pay reduction, it will be a true testament to the lack of true leadership in Lincoln Parish. People are already flocking to other parishes with better salaries and better benefits (e.g. Webster). We .stay because we love the kids, not for the leadership. We have to pay our own bills and take care of our own families though.
04/15/2020 at 10:40 pm |
The bloat at the central office is unprecedented and ridiculous. Position cuts should definitely come from there first.
04/15/2020 at 11:11 pm |
Now here’s a story we can get behind…give em hell Walt!
04/17/2020 at 5:25 pm |
I can promise you that if the sales tax supplement that has already been voted on by the board is cut or not given at all this year there will be a revolt by the teachers in Lincoln Parish. Word floating around is that there will be no sales tax supplement for teachers in May and that there will be teaching positions cut This comes from very reliable sources. I wonder if the election scheduled for May for a another tax for LP schools will still take place? Supposedly teachers are to get a 3,000 dollar raise from this tax. Been no mention of that since the virus came along. I promise you that the Superintendent will not volunteer to take a pay cut and there will be NO positions cut at the Central Office. It is going to be quite interesting to see how they fill all the open teaching positions when there is a mass exodus of teachers leaving when they take away the sales tax supplement from teachers after they have already approved the amount at a previous meeting.
04/20/2020 at 8:20 am |
I don’t see the sales tax bonus being cut, and I definitely don’t see teacher lay offs coming. If there were any employees to get laid off, they would likely begin with non essential staff like para’s, secretaries and maintenance/janitorial staff. Lincoln Parish should begin opening businesses up again May 1st. If 45 days of decreased sales tax causes teacher layoffs and decrease in pay, Lincoln Parish and Ruston have much bigger issues at hand.