[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Great ideas everyone!

I like Paul’s controlled format for both teachers and students. Has anyone considered just leaving the lockers for absolute last and having the kids come in for a day or two at end of summer? Leave yourself a couple of days to clean them after. Most High Schools the kids don’t even use their lockers anyway… speaking as the dad of a High School Junior.

Don’t forget we have a rough COVID framework that you can make your own in our resource docs.

https://oldmfaa.avatar-development.com/member-options/resource-documents-2/

Stay safe everyone,

Ken

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

1. Is your organization still paying staff to mostly stay home (essentially paid furlough)? <b>Nope. On March 16th, the administration had a meeting with my senior custodians and me, stating that anyone who was sick, had a sick family member, or was otherwise “uncomfortable about coming in to work” due to pre-existing conditions, family health concerns, etc. should stay home. They would not charge sick time, vacation time, or personal time. Otherwise, those who were physically able would start working two shifts a week, from 10 AM to 130 PM, rotating through our 3 schools that were doing the grab-and-go food program. Our high school is the starting point for the lunch prep and has enough staff that they rotated that schedule among themselves. This had a bumpy start but seemed to go OK, and maintenance followed a similar schedule, although they moved through all schools checking for security, mechanical issues, leaks, and completing minor work orders. As of April 10th, I started receiving panicked calls from custodians who had been contacted by HR telling them that they would not be paid for any days past April 6th unless they received a note from their doctor, and that even then, they would only be paid in accordance with the CARES Act guidelines. This resulted in the obvious quandry that they were being penalized after the fact for that week. They were under the impression, as I was, that the superintendent’s directive was still in effect. If it had changed, it would have been helpful to know PRIOR to April 6th so they could have gotten a note or made an educated decision about returning to work. It meant a mad scramble to contact primary cares for half a dozen of my employees on a Friday afternoon. There was never an official communication from HR or central administration about April 6th being a “return to work” date.</b>
2. Do you have any staff that are on unpaid furlough? Not that I know of, but HR is being highly secretive. They are not involving any department heads in their decisions or discussion with staff. If we have a staff member who does not want to come to work for some reason, we are to stop communication and refer them to HR. HR has an entry level clerk who is handling the majority of communication with all staff regarding the CARES Act and other personnel matters.
3. Have you had to layoff anyone? Not to date
4. Have your City/Town/School officials raised the possibility of layoffs or furloughs with you? The superintendent and assistant superintendent have used it essentially as a threat. The most commonly repeated phrase in all conference calls is that “we have a lot of people sitting at home all day doing nothing and getting paid for it and that needs to stop.” It’s actually gotten a bit exhausting to hear, since they were the ones who made the decision to send everyone home and minimize schedules.

Generally speaking, we (administrators) have received extremely minimal guidance but are also allowed to make almost no decisions about our departments. The superintendent’s office and HR are micromanaging almost every aspect of every department. Questions from nursing, principals, me (Facilities) go unanswered for days or weeks. Early on, when I made decisions either on my own or in coordination with the assistant superintendent, I was ridiculed, sometimes publicly in conference calls, by the superintendent.

On March 16th, <b>I was directed to have all custodians and maintenance personnel work two 3-hour shifts per week from that day forward until a determination was made about other plans. That determination is still pending. We have had multiple discussions and I have been assured at least twice that an email from central office was forthcoming, which would detail expectations for the custodial union (maintenance is non-union here). There was an MOA for the teachers/ clerical union, but never one for custodial/ food service/ transportation. We have had several discussions with our SEIU rep but everything has been awaiting the final word from Central.</b>

Communication, which was not this district’s strong suit to begin with, has almost completely broken down. I can contact my immediate supervisor, the assistant superintendent. But getting an audience with the superintendent is much more difficult, and they often seem to be contradicting each other. Department heads and school administrators have become frustrated — not by the situation as much as by the lack of communication, transparency and direction from leadership. No one is steering the ship and it is foundering.

I say all of this knowing that there are members here who know Haverhill folks and it is likely to get back to them and result in severe punishment if not termination. But I say it because I wonder if there are others out there facing similar challenges and how you are handling it. In recent weeks, I have just continued the schedule we have been on, made written and verbal suggestions to the assistant superintendent, and then waited — knowing that my suggestions will neither be approved, denied, acted upon or commented on.

I am working on a plan that I would like to see happen as we step back into some semblance of our former lives. I have communicated this to the assistant superintendent, but whether it goes any farther or is acted upon is anyone’s guess:

1. Separate out my staff into two schedules – A and B. Most schools have 2.5 or 3 employees and several have only 1. I want to divide them so that we minimize exposure and contact. Custodians would work one week on, one week off. First priority is flushing water lines, prepping the buildings for our summer occupancy walk-throughs, and putting in work orders for anything that may be an issue for maintenance to handle, and developing a summer cleaning schedule based on funky staffing. Summer cleaning protocols would follow, along with regular groundskeeping. When Shift A is working their week, Shift B will be home, collecting full pay, but required to complete online training each week. Then they would switch the following week.

2. Maintenance would work a rotating schedule of 3 days per week, with coverage spread out so that I have an experienced mechanic on with a newer mechanic whenever possible. Tackling work orders and some painting and plaster work that are desperately needed in several buildings. No big summer projects this year. Same deal — when they aren’t working, they are required to do a certain number of online training modules.

3. As the governor steps us back into a regular routine, we would transition into our normal summer schedule — everyone on 40 hours per week every week (if this happens before the end of summer).

I have noticed that, without much to do, some custodians (who are typically my go-to folks anyway) are stepping up and helping out where needed, not complaining, and coming in a bit extra here and there if necessary. Others (the usuals) are doing the bare minimum or are out for one reason or another. But those middle-of-the-roaders are starting to sour — not on me, but on the complete lack of direction and poor communication that pervades the district. They are doing their best to sit and play cards or watch others work. And with hit-or-miss oversight (I have 17 buildings and have been told I cannot come in to work with my children, so I stop by periodically but cannot do my regular rounds; and principals and APs are providing spotty coverage of buildings at best) and no teeth to my supervision right now, there’s not much I can do.

Anyway – I rarely post as I rarely have time to sit still long enough to log on. And I am not looking to vent or complain. Just trying to report the situation here since it seems most of you have received better communication from your central offices. Last week after the governor made his announcement, I heard nothing from up above about a plan to discuss where we go from here. I reached out toward the weekend to my supervisor who said they hadn’t really given it much thought yet.

It has been hugely helpful to read everyone’s posts, as it has helped me brainstorm the approach I’d like to take. I’d spent 2 years here gaining the trust and cooperation of my staff and working on improving communication between my supervisors and my employees. And it feels like all that work has been washed away. I tried hard to be a leader and set the tone for my team at the beginning of all this. And I have learned that this new administration (super 1.5 years, assistant 7 months) seems to prefer to rule without much insight or perspective from their  various “subject matter experts,” which is fine…to each their own. There appears to be a core COVID team of the superintendent, assistant superintendent, head of HR and IT director, but most of the rest of us aren’t getting much guidance about how to direct our staff, other than that we are not to make decisions about anything without their approval. After 20 years in careers as a consultant, engineer, mechanic, manager, supervisor, etc. this is a new experience for me and doesn’t seem to be going terribly well so far. So for now, I’m just doing what I can to reassure my staff, provide whatever information I receive, and weather the storm.

Heather Forgione

Haverhill Public Schools

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Hey everyone,

Glad to see everyone is action planning already. This is great info. I’ll keep in touch with Mary Dozois from DLS to figure out what a slow start will look like that they are comfortable with and when. While school is out until the Fall, hopefully, I do see us getting crews back into the buildings and working at some capacity much sooner than that.

I do like Paul’s idea of splitting up the crew. I’ve seen some discussions about having someone take temperatures before people walk in the door. Just another layer of protection against spreading the virus and your head custodian will love shooting the others foreheads with a temperature gun. PPE for sure and masks will be needed but will be a pain wearing for an eight hour shift.

Please keep in mind essential task to keep infrastructure from going to ruin is allowed. Grass mowing qualifies as essential. Just keep safety in mind and social distancing disinfecting of equipment before and after each shift.

I’ll keep y’all posted with any updates or webinars that might help with action planning a soft start.

Take care and stay safe out there. We are still in the peak in most areas in Massachusetts so don’t rush the return just yet.

Ken

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Hey everyone. Here is an update directly from the MSBA:

email from Matt Donovan:

Hi Ken,

Can you please share this with your members in regards to the current state of affairs and MSBA business. Please let me know of any questions and hope you are well and safe!

Regards,

Matt

https://www.massschoolbuildings.org/news_events/Message_For_Districts

Message for Districts

April 17, 2020

To respond to the impact of the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the MSBA office has been temporarily closed since March 17, 2020 until further notice. However, the MSBA remains committed to our partnership with districts and we continue to accept reimbursement requests, contracts and other documents electronically so we can continue to support project approvals and reimburse districts throughout this pandemic. In addition, the MSBA is taking multiple steps to assist districts. We are holding Board, Subcommittee, Panel and other MSBA meetings remotely so the MSBA process can continue to move forward. Additionally, the MSBA is working with districts to provide flexibility with extensions and MSBA deliverables. Several districts with projects in the MSBA’s capital pipeline have contacted the MSBA with concerns related to the effect that the current pandemic is having on projects. Each district and each project is facing its own challenges depending on what phase the project is in, as well as each district’s decisions on implementing COVID-19 guidelines. Some of the major concerns that we have heard are regarding MSBA deadlines, project schedules, and potential budget increases.

The MSBA Board of Directors sets the grant amount and reimbursement rate that a district can receive at the time of project approval and we cannot later increase that amount in order to remain in line with our annual funding cap limitation. As a matter of policy, the MSBA does not reimburse for change orders due to schedule delays or accelerated costs, and we have caps on change orders that are set at the time of project approval. We have done our programmatic planning and based our capital pipeline invitations according to this process and based on the annual funding cap limitation that we have. To change our processes or make exceptions would have a profound impact on our future program and impact the ability to continue with other projects in our pipeline.

Of note, the National Council on School Facilities has advised members to keep track of any additional facilities expenses related to the current health crisis. The MSBA concurs with this advice, as it is unclear at this time whether any of these expenses may be eligible to be reimbursed by funding to be allocated to the Commonwealth through the CARES Act. The MSBA appreciates our continued partnership with districts across the Commonwealth. We stand ready to assist districts as we navigate this unprecedented time together.

We recommend that districts work with their project teams and local counsel to review their project contracts and documents to identify any avenues of budgetary relief. Additionally, the MSBA suggests that districts work with their local governmental leaders and local counsel to determine whether there may be some type of assistance through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the CARES Act).

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Hey everyone,

Here is an updated link for Virtual Dude U registration. Thanks!

https://web.cvent.com/event/099ac2c9-b3bb-4e79-87a5-5c9db2c45412/summary?RefId=Peach

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Also some great info from our friends at MIIA:

The attached is the OSHA related training available through LocalGov U: https://www.localgovu.com/programs/

of particular interest to facilities might be the following:

Absorbents & Spills

Airborn & Bloodborne Pathogens

Back Injuries

First Aid

Bloodborne Pathogens for Public Entities

Chemicals & MSDS

Equipment Safety

Fire Behavior

Fire Cause Determination

Global SDS

Ladder safety

Lockout Tagout

Means of Egress

Personal Injury in the “Workplace

PPE Equipment

Power Toos safety

Preventing Accidents in the Workplace

Preventing Slips, trips Falls

Respirators & Air Quality

Public Employee Safety int he Community

Mary Ann Marino
Administrative Assistant
MIIA Loss Control
One Winthrop Square
Boston, MA 02110
617-426-7272 x 262
cell– 781-223-1870
http://www.emiia.org

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Hey Angela,

Most of your equipment suppliers have safety videos. Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TVRMfnUWhI

Custodial there are plenty or pay as you go: https://training.custodiantraining.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIpYbK8Z-x6AIVQZyzCh20Ww2jEAAYASAAEgI0HfD_BwE

ISSA offers opportunities through CMI: https://www.issa.com/certification-standards/cleaning-management-institute/custodial-training

Hope this is what you were looking for. Youtube is amazing and you can find thousands of quality training videos that you can have your workers watch. Maybe they can even turn in a 3 to 4 sentence report for you?  : )

Good luck out there everyone,

Ken

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Thank you for all the registered for tomorrow’s 1/2 Day Custodial Institute. We have a packed day and don’t forget we will be talking COVID-19 during our work loading session with J.P.Mayo from Hillyard.  https://oldmfaa.avatar-development.com/events/mfaa-march-1-2-day-institute-masbos-fy20-solutions-fair-expo/

See folks tomorrow,

Ken

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Hey Joe,

This is one of the items that will be presented at our March 10th 1/2 Day. The panel is working on putting together some information and I can talk to them about sharing some evaluation forms as part of their presentation.

For now, if you go to our resource docs. page I think there are some templates available. Being you are with schools there is some justification for having the wording align with the teacher’s evaluations just changing categories. Consistency across the board makes it easier to defend with your union.

Good luck,

Ken

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Thursday we also have:

South West Meeting in Westfield at Westwood Restaurant and Metro Boston area at Canton Schools Rodman Center

Friday:

Gill Montague HS for North West members

Also, mark your Calendars for March 10th for our 1/2 Day Institute. There is another session added for the afternoon on Facilities Maintenance Plans.

All events and registration are up on our events page: https://oldmfaa.avatar-development.com/events/

Be well everyone,

Ken

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Hey Everyone,

Just sending out a reminder of the Chapter meeting for Central is this Thursday at O’Connors Restaurant in Worcester at 11. Hope to see you there. Lets have a great round table discussion.

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Hi everyone,

Just reminding everyone that we have Chapter meetings scattered throughout the state this week. I hope to see you all at one of our meetings.

https://oldmfaa.avatar-development.com/events/

Be well,

Ken

 

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Here is the link to the information on the website: https://www.massschoolbuildings.org/building/SOIs

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Exciting speaker update for this Thursday:

Our first presentation from the Office of Public Safety/Inspections will be a panel presentation right from the top with Stephen Sampson (Chief of Inspections), Walter Zalenski (Supervisor of Inspections) and Joseph O’Malley (Code Coordinator). 

Don’t miss out on this amazing day of learning and networking. Register today and join us in Marlborough.

Ken

[Ken Wertz, MFAA Exec]

Hey Lori,

Yes and no on custodians. Have they had the required training to perform the work that you can verify with documentation? Do you have all the necessary safety equipment for them to be working on the roof for this item? For isolated items safer for you looking at Risk Avoidance of your aging crew to hire it out.  Or, just have Joe Sexton shovel it!!!! He isn’t in your union and could use the workout.

You could call Mary Dozois from DLS to get the info direct from them on what you can and can’t do.

Mary Dozois  CIH CSP

Supervisor, Workplace Safety & Health Program for Public Employees

MA Department of Labor Standards

72 School Street, Taunton, MA 02780

617-626-5987  mary.dozois@mass.gov  and  http://www.mass.gov/dols/wshp

 

For contractors, I used to use Suburban for this work on tough areas and would have my guys help out with areas that were a bit safer.

https://oldmfaa.avatar-development.com/sponsor/suburban-glass-mirror-co-inc-suburban-masonry-restoration-waterproofing/

You could also use your typical disaster recovery companies in a pinch but they might charge you more.

 

Good luck,

Ken