In the letter, Figdor sought to shift blame onto previous school officials over an accounting software system she says was not set up correctly. 00:11:46:20 "PLEASE MAKE TIME TO FULLY LAY OUT HOW YOU GOT TO THIS POINT AND WHAT THAT AUDIT REPORT RIGHT NOW DOES DOESN'T DOESN'T GIVE US A VERY GOOD PICTURE. You will receive an email to complete the registration. Employee Self ServiceAccess Pay History, W2 Forms(Click Here). THE SCHOOL SYSTEM HAS ENTERED AN AGREEMENT WITH THE UNION TO REIMBURSE STAFF FOR BACK FEES AND DEBTS OWNED AS A RESULT OF DELAYED PAYCHECKS. Enter your email and password to access comments. Portland Superintendent Xavier Botana answers a question from school board member Abusana Bondo during a meeting Tuesday night attended by more than 50 district employees, some who gave public comment about the districts ongoing payroll problems. Don't worry, we can still help! The school district signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) last week with both the Maine and Portland Education Associations, setting timelines and corrections in place to address payroll issues. District leaders responded that they had restructured the districts finance department and increased staff and were taking steps to shift payroll functions to a private company. But the departure of some key employees later led to the payroll problems that began in October, Botana has said. Superintendent Xavier Botana told staff in a Dec. 9 email that the district had heard from as many as 750 staffers, half of the districts roughly 1500 employees. "How did we get here? One full-time employee and one part-time employee were responsible for payroll for 1,900 staff members. DURING THE FALL SEMESTER - EMPLOYEES IN THE DISTRICT SUBMITTED MORE THAN 700 PAYROLL COMPLAINTS - REPORTING LATE AND INCORRECT PAYMENTS. Find how you can pay for certain bills, taxes, fines, and other fees. The MOU states that an audit of the district's payroll, by Spinglass LLC, is expected to be completed by the end of January. Needs to be properly archieved), Portland International Scholars Academy (PISA), Reconnection Services - REDO - Need to move images, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. A few days after the employees were overpaid, Kim Kennedy, the controller, emailed city finance department staff explaining that she needed to recoup overpayments. Create a commenting profile by providing an email address, password and display name. Infinite Scroll Enabled PORTLAND, Maine Portland Schools Superintendent Xavier Botana resigned Friday after the School Board accepted his resignation. Please make time to fully lay out how you got to this point and what that audit report right now does, doesn't give us a very good picture," said George Rhealt. $52K - $70K ( Glassdoor est.) Portland Public Schools is committed to attracting, supporting and retaining talented and diverse people who use their strengths to achieve our shared goals. The audit said the deficiencies could lead to records of pay rates and expenses being entered without proper documentation, invoices being recorded without appropriate review and pay rates being adjusted by people outside of human resources. For the latest breaking news, weather, and traffic alerts, download the NEWS CENTER Maine mobile app. PORTLAND, Maine Portland Public Schools Superintendent Xavier Botana announced plans on Friday to step down from his position in 2023. We are where we are because of the continued disregard of experienced employees, said Michelle Lawless, an ed tech and former ed tech union president. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Sign up to get Maine Wire delivered directly to your inbox: Type above and press Enter to search. The districts response in the audit on Sept. 22 said theyre exploring a solution outsourcing payroll to a private company though the timeline for that potential change may extend into late next year. PORTLAND, Maine . Create a commenting profile by providing an email address, password and display name. To get one, go to the subscriptions page. Suggested Searches payroll coordinator payroll administrator payroll supervisor payroll analyst payroll accountant payroll specialist Create Job Alert Learn more. On Monday, an outside firm, Spinglass, began a forensic audit of our payroll, meaning they will look at what each employee was paid compared to what they should have been paid, so we can ensure that every staff person was paid correctly. I am writing today as an individual member of the Portland Board of Education, not on its behalf. Payroll Updates & Information. Carol Bahcofner, of Rockland, said that she and other . , It is the districts job to ensure their employees get paid on time as promised., Portland school board rejected citys offer to help with payroll problems, Portland school district says ed techs have been paid correctly, with back pay, Auditors warned Portland school officials about potential payroll problems, Our live updates from Bidens visit to Maine, Windham woman remembered for compassion, artistry and commitment to family, The future of Portlands Time & Temperature Building is back in limbo, David Geary, Godfather of Maine craft beer, dies at 78, President Biden visits Maine to tout economic plans, sign order to boost manufacturing. Botana said Tuesday that140 people have communicated pay discrepancies to the district. The audit points to staffing shortfalls and lack of training as the primary reasons for the issues. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Translation Library. While I have worked tirelessly to find solutions, and we reached an agreement with the [Portland Education] Association regarding [the] next steps to ensure that all staff are paid accurately and on time, I think it is in the districts best interest that I step aside and allow new leadership to bring closure to these matters.. If they take that route, it could take well into 2023. The district received a letter of intent and a proposal from ADP, a management services company that offers payroll oversight. Portland Public Schools Superintendent Xavier Botana answers a question from school board member Abusana Bondo during a meeting on Tuesday. Sincerely, This was all part of a memorandum of understanding with the Portland Education Association, where the district agreed to rectify all payroll issues by December 2 of last year or pay penalties . Ultimately, the district is hoping to have its entire payroll outsourced by spring, Botana said. That has left us with staff who do not know the multiple workarounds and exceptions that exist in our system, all of which are poorly documented, Botana said at the Nov. 15 school board meeting, adding that, the district has redeployed HR staff to work on data entry.. We have one of the most diverse student populations in the state of Maine, with approximately 60 languages spoken in our 17 schools. Many of those initially impacted by the payroll issues are educational technicians and others who work on nontraditional, contingent or per diem contracts. Please wait for the page to reload. She was followed by the districts ed tech union president, Jen Cooper, and then a stream of mostly district educators. Staff members with lingering payroll issues were told that a case manager would be reaching out to them last week to begin solving the problem. Auto & Boat Registration. The report from Spinglass Management Group, LLC confirmed that lack of staffing what PPS had pointed to as the root cause of its payroll discrepancies dating . You can view, verify and/or print the following information as needed: Demographic Information Shoshana Hoose, an ESL teacher at Portland Adult Education since 2014, published a letter in the Phoenix on Nov. 11 describing payroll issues that have affected at least 50 hourly teachers, including herself, which started in October. Starting last week, a staff person from Munis, our software system, has been embedded with our team and is working to relaunch Munis, because it was launched initially with fundamental errors, former School Board Chair Emily Figdor posted to social media on Dec. 7. I implore them both to do the right thing for their community and resign, teacher Ileen Daponte said of Botana and Figdor. At the board meeting Tuesday night, one employee said she has been working for the district as a substitute teacher since October but has not been paid at all. That audit found that material misstatements were not detected and corrected in a timely manner.. Portland Public Schools release independent payroll audit report, THIS WEEK MARKS 30 YEARS SINCE FEDERAL LAW REQUIRED UNPAID FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE. Once Open Enrollment ends, no changes to benefits can be made without a qualifying life event. Don't have a commenting profile? Portland school district officials were warned in the spring that the districts financial system was vulnerable to problems. View. The investigation was completed by Spinglass Management Group after payroll issues in the district caused dozens of employees to be paid incorrectly during the fall semester. To get one, go to the subscriptions page. You can share 5 more gift articles this month. The superintendent cited "district payroll issues" as the primary reason for his decision to leave the position. Create a commenting profile by providing an email address, password and display name. According to the report, employees logged more than 700 payroll complaints in the fall, citing late payments and incorrect paychecks. The Biden administration highlighted the efforts of Maine and other states to expand access to affordable child care during a White House event Wednesday. The audit points to staffing shortfalls and lack of training as the primary reasons for the issues. Payroll is the most elemental promise made to an employee by an employer, Dowdy said. Exactly what caused the overpayments is unclear. At the September meeting, Botana said that out of the 11 full-time and four temporary positions in the districts finance department, five were open, although one would be filled in a few days. Login. Ongoing struggles within the districts finance department came to light afteran audit conducted by New Hampshire firm Melanson, which found payroll problems stemming from inadequate staffing. Figdor, a long-time progressive activist in Portland, made her apology following a series of blunders that caused the Portland school system to underpay and overpay hourly employees. Portland council says housing and racial justice are top priorities in goal-setting meeting, Into the Wild: Maines next official state wildlife. Portland Public Schools released the findings of an independent payroll audit on Tuesday. She also disputed earlier Press Herald reporting that showed she had rejected help from city of Portland officials. Allan Thomas Vigil, 31, appeared in the . Already registered? Portland Public Schools has roughly 1,450 employees, including approximately 700 teachers. The Board voted to accept Botana's. Our staff feel demoralized and disrespected at a time of year that is particularly challenging financially for many. Outsourcing its payroll system remains the school districts long-term plan for the issues they are currently having. The investigation was completed by Spinglass Management Group after payroll issues in the district caused dozens of employees to be paid incorrectly during the fall semester. The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox. Members of the public, mostly employees and their supporters, listen as Portland Public Schools superintendent Xavier Botana speak before public comment at Portlands School Board meeting on Tuesday. The Bath man accused of setting the Dike Newell elementary school on fire in June 2022 had his plea hearing delayed Wednesday. Shoshana Hoose, an ESL teacher at Portland Adult Education since 2014, published a letter in the Phoenix on Nov. 11. describing payroll issues that have affected at least 50 hourly teachers, including herself, which started in October. The boards chairwoman at the time, Emily Figdor, said the districts finance committee had been discussing the results of the audit since May and had worked with district officials to change the structure of the finance department and create and fund two new department positions. Please note, this day will be a full day of school, not an early release day. An. Those occur mostly when hourly staff are in more than a single position and those positions receive different compensation levels; when people change positions; when they receive stipends or other alternative compensations; and when they use vacation days on unpaid days, Botana told the district in a Nov. 15 letter. The report from. The school board is not scheduled to meet again until Jan. 3. Example video title will go here for this video. All Rights Reserved. THE INVESTIGATION COMES AFTER PAYROLL PROBLEMS CAUSED DOZENS OF STAFF MEMBERS TO BE PAID INCORRECTLY DURING THE FALL SEMESTER. Ed techs had . The school system reached an agreement with the Portland Education Association in Dec. to reimburse employees for late fees and debts owed as a result of late paychecks. Learn more. Elizabeth Capone-Newton, a parent of a student in the district, wrote in an email to city staff that the district is taking an individual approach to a widespread issue. It looks like you do not have any active subscriptions. The school district signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) last week with both the Maine and Portland Education Associations, setting timelines and corrections in place to address payroll issues. Portland Public Schools released the findings of an independent payroll audit on Tuesday. Portland School District ed techs were paid in full on Friday for the first time in six weeks following staffing shortages in the district's payroll department and software issues. Dowdy, the union president, was the first member of the audience to speak Tuesday night. That left the district without staff familiar with the districts payroll processes trying to manage the payroll system that auditors had previously warned had significant issues. Changes must be made in the qualifying time frame. Gorham's Corner, the five-way intersection in downtown Portland bound by Center, Fore, Pleasant and York streets, is getting a makeover, at least temporarily. During a school board meeting on Tuesday, one resident called for more transparency. The investigation was completed by Spinglass Management Group after payroll issues in the district. Instead, our payroll staff manually worked around the system, and when those staff were not there to run payroll two left in recent months, and one went on emergency medical leave in October the staff who stepped in did not know all of those manual workarounds. The investigation points to staffing shortfalls as the main cause of payroll issues in the district. Updated: 9:13 PM EST November 18, 2022 PORTLAND, Maine Staff at Portland Public Schools said a network outage lasting several days delayed their paychecks on Friday. The figure is a large uptick from the estimated 140 impacted employees reported by the district on Dec. 6. Payroll Update - February 6, 2023 - Spinglass Report Attached This letter from interim co-superintendents Melea Nalli and Aaron Townsend includes report completed by Spinglass Management Group from their audit of our payroll practices. In our payroll, in our communication, in our response, and Im incredibly sorry.. Google Apps Login. Info: Email Kathe Beem . Watch this video to see what sets Portland Public Schools apart. For a long time weve been fixing individual things and not repairing the underlying problems so we recognize that were on a hamster wheel and we have to get off of it, he said. A lack of pay at any time of year is really difficult, but at this time of year it can be overwhelming, she said, later referencing rising costs of goods and services and the holidays.
Best Folk Punk Bands Of All Time,
Were Woolly Mammoths Alive With Dinosaurs,
Mt Vernon High School Prom 2023,
Articles P
