Colleagues,
As the summer recess is nearly over, I know that some teachers are wondering when they will finally get paid, or paid accurately, for the work they’ve already done. And most RCSD employees, including teachers, are also wondering if the District will be able to meet payroll correctly on September 5 and beyond.
Superintendent Rosser expressed “great confidence” that RTA bargaining unit members will indeed receive their regular pay as scheduled because the District did a test run with Oracle that confirms this. We hope so too but, despite the District’s assurances, we will believe it if/when it actually happens. He also indicated that some issues with extra pay and retro pay may not be resolved until the September 19 payroll.
In a united front with our sister unions (BENTE, RAP and ASAR), we have spent the summer addressing the issues that already affected our members this summer. Of the approximately 140 teachers who were adversely impacted, some of those cases were corrected but most remain unresolved. And all along we have demanded that the District develop a back-up plan to avoid an even greater potential crisis once schools reopen.
Just last Thursday, the District released an update on the Oracle debacle (see attached). It includes a summary of challenges, issues they claim to have resolved, current steps, and what to expect. They tried to make their report sound like they have things under control but it is far from being convincing. That is why we support the calls for an independent investigation and a forensic audit of the RCSD’s experience with Oracle.
In addition to filing Class Action Grievances, we have already reached out to the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor and are awaiting a response to the issues we’ve brought to their attention. Our attorneys are prepared to file further litigation and lawsuits in case that becomes warranted by what happens with the September 5 payroll. And we will also seek to involve the NYS Comptroller and the Governor’s office, if necessary. Meanwhile, we have already begun negotiating with Superintendent Rosser on how to reimburse our members for interest on delayed payments and damages resulting from absent or inaccurate compensation.
The District’s payroll issues may be just the tip of the iceberg in their incompetent and botched implementation of the Oracle Fusion data platform. All this may take the District some time to resolve but we are doing everything possible to ensure that it will, indeed, be resolved. As always, we’ll keep you informed about the progress of our efforts on your behalf.
Enjoy the rest of the Labor Day weekend and please join us at tomorrow’s Labor Day parade (see attachment below). Expect to hear from us again soon.
Adam Urbanski, RTA President