Montgomery County teachers file class action grievance over payroll issues

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (DC News Now) — Frustration is growing among some educators in the Montgomery County Public Schools system (MCPS) after some did not receive their paychecks on time, and others received less than they were owed.

Now, the Montgomery County Educators’ Association (MCEA) has filed a class action grievance against the school system, hoping to bring attention and swift action to what they say is an ongoing problem tied to a new payroll system.

“It is really outrageous,” David Stein, president of MCEA, said.

He said the issue is not isolated and that several dozen members have reported problems.

“We need to make sure that our members are paid. They have bills themselves that need to be taken care of and families to support,” Stein said. “It can really be a hardship when people are counting on a paycheck coming at a particular point and then it’s not there.”

Stein said the problems began after MCPS rolled out a new payroll system. Since then, teachers and staff have reported various issues to the school district.

“We have hundreds of members who have had issues with the payroll procedures,” Stein said. “Not just not being paid, but there are issues with leave balances and incorrect pay amounts and some other issues that need to be resolved.”

By filing a class action grievance, Stein said the union is using its bargaining power to push the district to act.

“We’re basically forcing them to deal with the situation and resolve these issues that hundreds of our members are having,” Stein said.

In response, MCPS said the issue affected summer employees who either started work after July 11 or submitted their timecards after that date. The district says all impacted employees will be paid by Wednesday.

In a statement, the district said:

“MCPS sincerely regrets any financial and personal strain this delay may have caused. MCPS is committed to working with our associations to ensure our team members are confident they will be compensated correctly and in a timely manner going forward.”
Montgomery County Public Schools

But Stein said the delay never should have happened in the first place.

“They’ve known these problems were there, and they need to make sure that they solve the issues,” he said.