NHPS Steps Away From Building-Maintenance “Privatization”

by Maya McFadden

Adopted in-house positions vs. private-company positions.

New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) took a key step towards less privatization and more in-house facilities management last week — thanks to a Board of Education vote in line with what the district’s custodial union, Local 287, has been calling for for over a year.

The school board voted 6-0 to adopt that in-house transition plan during their latest meeting at King/Robinson School.

Local 287 President Tom DeLucia and Vice President Dennis Tondalo spoke up at last Monday’s meeting in support of the district’s plans to transition towards more self-operated facilities management. They said this will help boost staff morale and offer a long-awaited difference in building safety for students and staff.

NHPS Chief of School Operations (CSO) Paul Whyte presented on the potential $446,316 in savings that the plan could bring to the district. If adopted, the plan would realign several of the district’s facilities-management positions to in-house positions rather than outsourcing them to the district’s private facilities management company, ABM.

The changes covered by this plan would designate the following NHPS positions to Local 3144, the city’s union for management and professional workers: a Director of Facilities (salary $130,000), District Supervisor Custodial (salary $100,000), Assistant District Supervisor Night (salary $90,000), Project/Construction Manager (salary $120,000), Admin. & Finance Manager (salary $86,500), and Environmental Program Manager (salary $115,000).

The restructuring would also bring on three new building managers under Local 287, two assistant building managers, four new tradesmen, and a Roofing and Grounds Supervisor (salary $90,000).

In total, the adopted plan for realigning the facilities-management positions would cost $1,551,500 for salaries. That’s compared to the district’s current annual contract totaling $1,997,816 for 14 management positions at the New York-based ABM.

DeLucia, who has been a custodian in New Haven for 26 years, is a 1993 Wilbur Cross alum and New Haven native. He said the city’s in-house custodial staff are similarly dedicated and have invested more than a decade to supporting the district’s school buildings.

The shift from ABM spearheading the district’s facilities management is necessary, DeLucia said during the public testimony portion of last Monday’s meeting. The Board of Education, the city, and students will “finally rid ourselves of a major problem that has been plaguing our school system for over a decade: Privatization.”

He noted that in recent years, while working under ABM, his union members have had reoccurring issues with unaddressed work orders, building supplies not being delivered on time, poor communication, and non-working custodial equipment.

“Our morale can’t get any lower,” he said. He described facilities management in recent years as “poor” and reactive rather than proactive.

Since ABM has been in the picture, DeLucia said it has left its facilities director, safety manager, custodial director, and project manager positions unfilled — leaving his team of custodians without supervision. “They have been robbing us blind for years,” he concluded.

Tondalo, a building manager at Conte West Hills school, said on Monday that he started work for NHPS at 24 years old. Years later, he remains determined to make a difference in his city and to keep New Haven’s schools running properly.

That dedication to his city has shaped his work ethic, values, and commitment to the district. He said so many of the district’s other custodians share that dedication. “Many more of us understand the buildings, the work, and the responsibilities we all share supporting students’ success through safe, well-maintained schools,” he sad.

The Board of Education’s adoption of the self-operated facilities plan is a step toward a district with buildings that students feel safe walking into, Tondalo said.

“We will truly now have a voice that can be heard at the table,” he continued, and that voice will be grounded in real experiences.

He promised: “You will see the difference.”

“By believing in this transition you are believing in the people who are already doing the work, care deeply about these schools, and who already take great ownership in moving forward,” Tondalo concluded. “When you invest in the people who take pride in the work every single day, you’re not just improving buildings; you can create a clean safe environment where students feel secure, supported and actually want to be.”

Whyte’s presentation laid out the work ahead over the next 60 days to make this transition plan a reality. That work includes forming a transition team, posting the positions, hiring and onboarding, and quarterly-progress monitoring.

View Whyte’s full presentation below.

selfoperatedfacilitiesDownload

Tondalo, “We will truly now have a voice that can be heard at the table.”