Ninety-nine Houston teachers who received performance bonuses are now being told to pay it back because the district accidentally overpaid them. Bonuses ranged from $62.50 to $2,790. School officials blame a computer programming error.
The Houston Chronicle's Ericka Mellon quotes Fallon: "If you tell someone they deserve money and put it in their bank account, you've got a helluva nerve taking it back."
Fallon said she is encouraging teachers not to sign the form authorizing the district to deduct the money from their paycheck. Without the signed form, the district can't take back the money, Fallon said.
"And if they direct them to sign it, we'll see them in court," she added.
Asked to respond to Fallon's comments, HISD spokesman Terry Abbott said simply, "The money will need to be returned."
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The HFT opposed the merit system when it was unanimously approved by the school board last year. This is the third event to hamper implementation of the incentive pay scheme since its inception.
The superintendent referred to the teachers who received top bonuses as "the cream of the crop," drawing criticism and angry e-mail from offended employees who didn't get bonuses.
Later, after the district payed out $14 million to almost 8,000 teachers, HISD distributed another $1 million after officials realized several hundred teachers had been overlooked.
Salaries for full-time teachers in the district range from about $40,000 to nearly $68,000.
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