FOR EIGHT YEARS, per-diem safety officer Darren Friend gave all he could to the Philadelphia School District.
As thanks, he was laid off.
But his story is not unlike those of the other blue-collar workers across the district who have gotten layoff notices in the mail as the district attempts to close its massive budget gap.
The workers don't make six-figure salaries, but they do make sure buildings are well-maintained; they risk injury breaking up fights, and they help keep order.
"The district is being heavy-handed with us because, I think, we are not the [Philadelphia Federation of Teachers]," said a maintenance worker who didn't want to be identified.
"We do not have that power; we are not visible. We are just janitors. We need help. We need people to know that the people that do these jobs are the core of Philadelphia."
The district announced Wednesday that it plans to lay off 848 facilities workers and bus drivers, the savings from which were not provided.
Building engineer Cedric Speights said he got his notice in July. "It's still kind of confusing. I'm definitely upset," he said. "They're kind of dangling the job in front of you."
The district saved about $3 million by calling back only 60 of 250 per-diem officers for the fall.
District spokesman Fernando Gallard noted that the layoffs were due to the district's shaky budget situation.
"The last thing we want to do is lay off individuals who provided a very good service for the district," he said. "But we are faced with making cuts due to a shortage of state and federal funds."
School police union President Michael Lodise - who does not officially represent the officers - said the district has denied the remaining officers' requests for layoff notices, unjustly keeping them on the payroll as active employees and making it harder for them to claim unemployment.
Because of this, only a handful of officers have been approved for unemployment, said Darren Friend, a per-diem officer who awaits results of his own unemployment appeal.
He planned to join a group of officers today outside district headquarters to protest what many consider unfair treatment.
"They're heartless," said officer Donald Lewis, whose last assignment was at Bartram High School. "Look at how they did us."
