Whew, dodged a bullet and get to keep my job

[GasSavers_TomO]

So today was a general election day and up there were only 4 questions on the ballot for my county. They all involved my job, directly.

Question 1 was to renew a levy from 2002.
Question 2 was to adjust the renewed levy for inflation.
Question 3 was to make all busing free and to reduce after school sports/activity fees by half. Also this would open up all of the pools that we had at some of the middle schools and bring back swimming as part of Phys. Ed.
Question 4 was a bond for updating computers and to reduce the student to computer ratio from 9:1 to 5:1 for the entire district.

Question 1 had to pass in order for question 2 to be able to pass, then question 3 could only pass if both 1 and 2 passed. Question 4 was independent of the other three.

In the event that Question one failed, the district would have to make $42 million dollars in cuts by the start of the 2008 school year. In the event that question 1 passed but 2 failed, then we would have to have made $12 million dollars in cuts.

In both cases, my job would've been on the chopping block due to the sheer amount of money we would lose from having no levy support.


Ok, if you are still reading this, I'm sure you want to know the results.
Here they are:
Q#1 = Yes vote, Passed
Q#2 = Yes vote, Passed
Q#3 = No vote, Not Passed
Q#4 = No vote, Not Passed


What this means (the short answer):
I keep my job, but activity fees and the no free busing within 2 miles of a school deal stay as they are, as well as nearly all of the pools staying closed. It also means that we won't be getting any new computers for a looong time again.


So, in conclusion, I'm happy that things will be renewed and preserved....until the next levy vote. the next Levy vote will be in 7 years though.

[cfg83]

TomO -

Congrats and a big Phewwwwww! I understand that "bead of sweat" on your forehead. I've been at my corp-job for 17+ years. In the time I have been through so many layoffs that my sarcastic joke is that I qualify as an "Ace" (I've survived at least 5 layoffs).

It's nice to know that you have a 7 year window to keep doing your work. That's gotta feel good, .

CarloSW2

[SVOboy]

In related news, I just got laid off!

But good for you,

[trebuchet03]

From that, I'm fairly certain you're a teacher... What do you teach and what grade? Just curious

and..

You guys have pools! I went to school in South Florida - and I never saw a pool at a school... You know, SOUTH FLORIDA - a peninsula, lots of water... Knowing how to swim could be a lifesaver if the lightning didn't get you first

-----
Somewhat related... $275 million was cut from Florida education (that might possibly be just for Universities)... Originally, the same governer that cut that funding also said no to any tuition increases - somehow expecting things to just work out... That would have meant fee increases, not covered by most scholarships. Luckily, a tuition increase was worked out... oh goody.

[Erdrick]

Congrats, and I along with trebuchet03, would like to know your occupation.

[Rick Rae]

Congratulations, TomO!

SVOboy, I feel your pain. I've had the same great job for nearly 14 years and had planned to ride it to retirement. But the bean counters caught the greed bug and outsourced my entire department. It's Layoff City around here.

I have about three weeks before they won't let me come to work anymore.

Rick

[SVOboy]

That sucks man, I'm lucky because it's just part time and my second job actually pays 25% more...you'll find something though, ne!

[rh77]

Congrats TomO Are you in a district IT department, BTW?

RH77

[theclencher]

yer lucky the breeders are the dominant voting force and they wanna keep their subsidies rolling in, iy'da voted no

[GasSavers_TomO]

For those that wondered what my occupation is in the District:
My official title is Technology Paraeducator (it was Technology Paraprofessional last year, lol). I don't like the term either way since a Para works under/with someone, and I don't work under/beside anyone in the district really.

Basically I keep all 150sum computers running in the building I work at. Along with running the the camera, etc for the weekly Live Broadcast (Announcements basically), keeping all the printers working and filled with toner, educating the staff/kids on house to use the computers, fixing the copiers to save some money from having to call in a repairman, create specialized forms for staff, repair anything that has batteries or plugs into the wall, I'm the staff photographer, and am also the consultant for when it comes to purchasing technology in any way, shape, or form.

It's a very rewarding job as it lands me side jobs working on staff members' home machines. I also am an ASE Certified Mechanic, so I land side jobs of working on staffs' vehicles as well.

For the school part of it all, I get paid for 6.5 hours a day 184 days a year at $13.70 per hour. For those who don't want to do the math, I gross $16,385.20 per school year. That is pretty low wage considering all the times I stay longer than my 6.5 hours a day (I don't get any overtime or any time past my 6.5 hours) and the type of support I'm doing.

I do believe that Confucius was right in saying: Find a job you love and you will never work a day in your life. I love the people i work with and every day gives me a new challenge or opportunity to learn something more.

Now I do get a little bump in pay every year. I started this job two years ago, the day after my daughter was born. When I started, my wage was $11.25 per hour. My AS Degree in Computer Science and Electronics Repair was good for a $1.50 bump in wages as soon as I submitted my transcripts. In about 7 more years I'll be sitting around $20 an hour, assuming that the 3 year contract negotiations keep going well.

So there's a little slice of my life for you all to chew on, lol.