Jan. 23--Chicago Public Schools began laying off employees from its bureaucratic ranks Friday in an effort to reduce costs while avoiding cuts to the classroom.
A total of 227 employees were to get layoff notices Friday, district CEO Forrest Claypool said in a statement. About 60 of those employees were eligible to reapply for 35 available positions, he said.
In addition, Claypool said 180 vacant positions have been eliminated. On top of that the district said it has cut 61 positions since August.
Through those moves, the district said it has cut 433 jobs and would save about $32 million this fiscal year.
Affected employees began getting word of the layoffs early Friday. District officials have said job cuts were to target CPS' "central office and administrative staff," not teachers, as officials execute a plan to reduce expenses while borrowing hundreds of millions of dollars to make ends meet.
The district's latest round of money troubles, and the installation of a new administration headed by Claypool, led some employees to expect layoffs.
"Rumors actually started circulating around back in August," said Rana Donaldson, who was employed until Friday as a billing coordinator in the district's facilities management department. "This wasn't shocking to me; I knew it was coming."
A district spokeswoman told reporters that CPS would release a more detailed accounting of the cuts at the end of Friday's business day.
"We do not take these actions lightly, but as we ask others to do their part, we are doing everything in our power to put our fiscal house in order," Claypool said in a statement issued Thursday.
The district said the job cuts would hit the district's purchasing, law, information technolgy, facilities and payroll departments. CPS' office for special education services would also be affected, amid an unspecified effort to revamp its operations.
CPS officials say they are making about $80 million in nonclassroom cuts, with roughly half of those savings coming from cuts to the district's central office. The district is asking the state to cover the bulk of its budget shortfall.
So far the state has shown no indication it will come to the district's aid. On Wednesday, Gov. Bruce Rauner and Republican legislative leaders proposed a plan that would authorize a state takeover of school district finances and also provide a path for the system to declare bankruptcy. City officials, including Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Claypool, were quick to shoot down that proposal, as was Democratic state Senate President John Cullerton.
The proposed layoffs come as negotiators for the school system and Chicago Teachers Union continue to bargain over a contract to replace one that expired June 30. Both sides have agreed to enter, on Feb. 1, a final stage of negotiations that must occur before teachers can carry out a threat to walk off the job.
jjperez@tribpub.com
