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Danville EA Wins RIF Challenge

Teachers in Danville were anxious enough this year as the recession took its toll on family finances and the prospects for next year's school division budget.

Then their already frayed-nerves took another hit when Danville Education Association (DEA) President Kim Roberson learned the school board was considering changes to the school division's Reduction-in-Force (RIF) policy that would have undermined teachers' job security.

No one welcomes layoffs. But effective RIF policies combat favoritism and ensure that teachers who've committed years of their careers to the school system are rewarded for their loyalty.

The first draft proposal considered by a school board policy committee, though, proposed that no more than 10 percent of veteran teachers at each school would be designated by the principal as "essential" personnel protected from layoff. All other teachers (including the newest teachers still on annual contract) would comprise two "tiers" of teachers more likely to get the axe if the need arose.

The principle of the matter-that seniority is the fairest way to decide layoffs-was a sticking point, but members and nonmembers alike were also taken aback by the idea that the majority were not doing "essential work," says Roberson, a librarian at George Washington High School. "That really offended people," she says. "I heard that over and over again from people: 'I am working as hard as I can, and they're saying that what I do is not essential.'"

DEA jumped into the fray, with Roberson sending a flyer to all members informing them of the proposed policy and encouraging them to contact their school board representatives. Many did. "That worked really well," says Roberson, "because the school board had to realize what a nerve they were hitting. Their intentions may have been good, but I don't think they saw how damaging this proposed policy would be, in terms of morale and our ability to find and keep good teachers in Danville."

With DEA keeping the pressure on, the board in March abandoned its original proposal and ultimately passed a revised policy that eliminated the "essential" tier language. (You can check out the proposed policy here and the adopted policy here .)

"The compromise was much better than the original plan," says Roberson. "This was a real victory for our Association."