Detroit schools to cut 3,200 jobs
By Jerry Isaacs
3 April 2004
Detroit Public Schools officials announced Thursday the district would lay off 3,200 school employees, including 900 teachers, by July 1. The job cuts, which amount to 13 percent of the workforce, are in response to a budget shortfall of $78 million last year and a projected deficit of $91 million in 2005, officials say.
The cuts in the $1.5 billion budget follow an announcement last month that an additional 450 administrators could lose their jobs. The district, which already faces chronic overcrowding in the classrooms, also plans to shut at least three schools, in addition to the 16 closed or consolidated last year. The budget for supplies and purchased services will be cut by more than one-third to save $50 million, with funding for playground improvements slashed from $1 million to $250,000.
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2004/ap...detr-a03.shtml