Evening star., 1943-10-14
School Officials
Study Revisions
In Pay Methods
2,700 Get Checks
Nine Days Late;
ESQ Still Unpaid

Public school officials today are
considering revision of payroll pro-
cedure to prevent recurrence of
the nine-day and two-week delay
IN payment suffered by $3.50 teach
ers this month.
All teachers were scheduled to be
paid on Saturday, October 2, u days
ago. About 2,700 of them got their
checks this Monday, nine days late.
Three hundred more were paid
Tuesday, ten days late. About $50
others teachers, who were not en-
ployed until just before the opening
of school September 20, will not be
paid until tomorrow.
r. w. Holt, chief accountant, re-
sponsible for preparation for the
teachers payroll. said he intends
to ask Superintendent of Schools
Haycock to consider changing the
deadline for the majority of teacher
appointments from early September
to late June.
Present System.
Under the present system, as
sistant superintendents do not have
to submit their teacher rolls until
Just before the Board of Education
meets to approve personnel changes
in September. With the hundreds
of changes that war turnover makes
necessary in addressograph plates,
Mr.. Holt said, the period of two
weeks between board approval of
these rolls and the day of payment
Is much too short.
There will still be teachers un-
certain Of returning and more not
appointed until the last minute,
Mr.. Holt said. He believes, how
ever. that the majority of teacher
appointments, transfers. promotions
and other changes could be re-
ported by superintendent for pas
sage at a late June or early July
board meeting His clerks could
thus prepare much of the payroll
during the summer, Mr.. Holt ex-
planned, and leave the early fall
days clear for last-minute changes
and additions.
Mr.. Haycock added that an earlier
board meeting this year might have
been easier He intends, he said,
to watch the payroll situation
closely next June to decide how
early in the fall he should ask the
board to meet.
Board Asks Suggestions.
The board members, I am sure,
u,o11ld uelro,,oe opv s,,ooectiopc fror,o
the administrative staff to avoid the
inconvenience and embarrassment
that delayed checks have caused our
teachers this month" Mrs. Henry
Grattan Doyle, president of the |
board declared. She recalled that, |
In response to query by board men, |
bers, Mr.. Haycock had given as his
opinion in July that September IS
board meeting would be "all right"
with school officers. No report on
the critical payroll situation came
to board members during the sums
mer she said.
Mr.. Holt has been considering ask
ing for revision of superintendents'
deadlines on teacher appointments
for sometime, he said, but has never
actually done so. He made no rec
ommendation for an earlier board
meeting, he continued, because he
felt it would have been "presump-
tuous"
"As soon as this is over" he said.
Il hope to work out something with
Mr.. Haycock to avoid the delay hap
pening again" The payroll Office
and all school officials have been
deluged with calls about pay checks.
Teachers have also phoned newspa-
pers and were reported to have car
ried their problem to Capitol Hill.
Ten-Payment Method.
Late pay checks in October are
particularly hard on school teachers
because of the 10-payment system
under which they are employed. |
Public school teachers here receive
no pay for the months of July and I.
August when school is not in session. |
Thus. they have to live on their June |
pay check, received in early July, |
until they get their September pay
checks in October.
On the other hand, the September
payroll takes the longest 20 compile
because of new appointments, pro-
motions, transfers and other changes
In status School payroll clerks also
had to handle hundreds of queries
on income tax estimates in Septem-
Der and then figure income withhold
Ing tax deductions on all school
employees.
The auditors Office hopes to speed
up processing of teachers checks
at the District Building by purchase
of four accounting machines and
employment of an addressograph
operator.