It's not how many employees wanted to spend their weekend, going over every single supplementary benefit account to make sure the money taken from their paycheck was there.
On Friday, hundreds of Maury County School employees learned while deductions were made from their paychecks the funds never made it into their policy providers accounts.
"We're asking where's the money? Why isn't it being sent in to these companies," David Huebner with the Maury County Education Association.
On Saturday, School Superintendent Chris Marczak sent a letter to employees saying in part, "I am aware that a lot of you have been reporting issues with your benefit deductions, and, like you, I want to get this remedied as soon as possible."
Marczak went on to say consulting company, Vaco, was hired in December to address finance issues after multiple teachers were not paid on time. "Now that Vaco is getting a handle on payroll, they are turning their sights to the benefit side of the finance department," Marczak wrote.
"We don't know where the fault lies but we trust in our school system to be able to find those areas and correct it," Huebner said.
However, where did the money deducted from paychecks go? That still remains somewhat of a mystery. According to one school board member, the money was just sitting there and has since been paid out. Another board member said the money wasn't lost, it simply wasn't transferred.
As administrators worked to locate the root of the problem, employeesworked to stay focused. "Its on your mind and it will affect teaching, and our relationship in handling students and with parents in our community," said Huebner.
Vaco released the following statement Tuesday, “Vaco feels that Maury County is committed to doing the right thing. As a testament to that commitment, Vaco was hired on December 5, 2016 to bring in a team of highly-skilled financial experts to help implement new and improved processes.
That engagement is on-going as those processes are stream-lined and implemented.“ - Amanda Phillips, Vaco Chief Marketing Officer
On Tuesday evening, NewsChannel 5 received the following statement from Dr. Marczak;
As a follow up to your inquiry today, I wanted you to know that we feel strongly about taking care of all employees here and we know those employees work hard for their money. Teachers work hard to make sure students are ready for life and they do that by keeping our mission in the forefront of everything they do. Teachers also work hard to make sure the MCPS 7 Keys to College & Career Readiness are top-of-mind in their teaching. I know this because I am in schools nearly every day and have seen it. They care about their kids. These considerations are what prompted the email Saturday:
Good afternoon Maury County Public School employees,
As you may remember, last month we brought in an outside company, Vaco, to help us address some issues in our finance department. Thus far, they have been working hard to bring the payroll side up to speed, and we hope that you have noticed that they have been making a lot progress.
Now that Vaco is getting a handle on payroll, they are turning their sights to the benefit side of the finance department. I am aware that a lot of you have been reporting issues with your benefit deductions, and, like you, I want to get this remedied as soon as possible. Based upon my meetings with Vaco, it is my understanding that they should have the benefit side of the department, likewise, up-to-speed by January 27th.
I know some of you may not think that we deserve it, but, I am hopeful that you will grace us with a little more of your hard-earned patience to make things right. If you have not already done so, I would request that you continue to report any problems that you notice with your checks, to Vaco, through the Google Doc so that they can address submissions in a timely and organized fashion: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfDwA9jMe1tsbF1mdHloFjfvSOGOFINcwFHvH768CKNx3DskQ/viewform
I will be following up with you again, after January 27th, to see if anyone is still having any issues, but I am hopeful that will not be the case. Until then, I can assure you that I understand your frustrations and that I, and my office, are working hard to make things right.
I hope that you have great weekend.
I care about our employees and know payroll issues will be sorted out. We’ll do it right and as promptly as we can. Because we are committed to doing it right, it has taken some time. Our employees have been frustrated and I empathize with that; they’ve also been patient and I thank them for that.
Dr. Chris Marczak
