School districts confront crises daily, from the devastation of tornados to the heartbreak of school shootings. For nearly every conceivable circumstance, districts have created plans, drills, procedures, and best practices. But COVID-19 strains that hard-earned crisis response experience because it defies all the parameters: it is unpredictable, both now and into the future, with an underlying devastation that is poised to have long-term and wide-ranging impacts on individual and organizational health, finances, and emotional well-being.
COVID-19 upends what we know about school operations, workforce forecasting, budgeting, student enrollment, mobility trends – everything. In the midst of this uncertainty, we must use our values to guide us. As the leaders of Human Capital for public school systems, we must ensure that we elevate the HUMAN aspect of our work as we navigate what will likely be choppy waters in the coming weeks and months as we respond to COVID-19’s impacts.
The uncertainty of COVID-19’s arc – when and where it may diminish and then remerge – will likely cause reactionary financial and academic responses for the foreseeable future. These reactionary responses can be devastating for your employees and the stability of your workforce. In the short-term, minimizing both hiring and downsizing until trend lines are clearer will mitigate the financial and academic costs of turnover, and the “churn” of cyclical downsizing, then rehiring.
Even with attempting to minimize reactive workforce adjustments in the short-term, the hard reality of financial and operational shifts due to COVID-19 is already causing some districts to project reductions in force, from central office staff to maintenance workers to school-based employees. Who to downsize is a matter of local contract or policy but we encourage thoughtful, innovative and strategic efforts to protect recent progress in diversity hiring, staffing high-needs schools and workforce quality.
First and foremost, to the extent possible, HR teams must minimize the direct impact of budget cuts to students and school-based staff. Low-hanging fruit strategies, such as reviewing positions that remain unfilled to determine if they can be closed and delaying hiring associated with new initiatives, may limit the extent to which downsizing is necessary. Saving even a few staff members’ positions from downsizing is a win for those individuals and their families.
After fully exploring cost-saving measures, a human-centered approach to necessary workforce reductions that is supportive and respectful is what is required of all of us, in all our actions. As is frequently the case, doing the right thing is also good “business.” The individuals who are furloughed may be recalled in the future, they could be needed as substitutes or volunteers, some are current or future parents in your school district. . . in short, they are your community.
Create for them the experience you would want for yourself, or a family member, at such a difficult time.
Being human-centered in your approach does not mean compromising your planning and execution standards. If anything, the process should feel even more efficient, coordinated and professional in order to convey to those affected that these are thoroughly considered actions planned with care and sensitivity. In short, a compassionate and well-executed reduction in force is how an organization shows respect for its employees, even when carrying out its most difficult duty.
Actions and strategies to ensure that reductions in force are supportive and respectful may include:
- Defining what you want impacted individuals to experience and feel, and then memorializing your values and approach.
- Preparing impact statements for each unit (central office department or school) affected by a RIF that succinctly describe how services or other deliverables will be affected by the downsizing, providing transparency for remaining staff and other constituents.
- Planning carefully for delivering notices of furlough to those not at work in order to avoid letters arriving and being opened at inopportune times (such as while a parent is with his/her children).
- Making Employee Assistance Program support available in the short term; consider extending this benefit for a period of time such as 6 months.
- Preparing materials for individuals being furloughed that contain clear and helpful information on employment-related matters such as health care coverage and other such matters that will surely be of concern.
- Offering materials and resources to assist those who are furloughed – such as resume review services, job search training and advice, networking, guidance for applying for unemployment, etc.
- Delivering packing materials for the collection of personal belongings (when safe to do so) to the workspaces of affected employees and including small items such as water bottles and granola bars with packing materials – and discretely available Kleenex.
- Providing escorts to vehicles to help with carrying personal belongings (when safe to do so). Planning for those who must use public transportation.
- Observing safety guidelines and protocols in all situations.
Additional resources and support may include:
- A hotline staffed by trained HR volunteers to answer questions about benefits, etc. Even if exit packets include information there will be questions – answering them promptly and thoroughly is a sign of respect.
- A “survivors” communication can offer supportive messages and resources to those who are concerned for their colleagues and worried about their own job security.
- A resource fair for furloughed individuals in the following weeks to connect them with job search tools and strategies, unemployment compensation representatives, financial and banking professionals, health care providers and other relevant supports. An event such as this – virtually or in-person – can demonstrate that these furloughed individuals have not been forgotten after their service to the district.
Reductions in force are difficult no matter how well-planned; let’s challenge ourselves to do it in a way that creates the experience we would want for ourselves or our family members.
—
Jody Spolar serves as the State Technical Assistance Manger for Urban Schools Human Capital Academy (USHCA), a national nonprofit that develops, supports, and networks human resources and human capital leaders in schools, districts, charter organizations and states to drive measurable improvements in teacher and principal quality. Our belief is that the best people get the best results for students.