Dist. 158 faculty members file lawsuit

Six District 158 employees are suing the embattled District 158. Take a look at their salaries at Family Taxpayers Network website. It is amazing to see that Jane Kantor was making 57,711 for 9 months of work in 2004 and had a 49% income increase over 3 years and it is still not enough. You can view her salary increases on the Family Taxpayers Network website.


Dist. 158 faculty members file lawsuit
By Charles Keeshan
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Saturday, November 19, 2005

A group of faculty members is suing Huntley School District 158, claiming the district reneged on a deal for them to work five additional days at the end of the last school year and start of this one.

The lawsuit, filed this month in McHenry County court, asks a judge to order the district to pay the seven staff members for the additional days, whether they worked or not, and fund their attorney fees and court costs.

The lawsuit does not indicate how much that might cost the district, but a teacher’s contract included with the filing listed pay for additional days at as much as $336 per day.

Listed as plaintiffs are Karen Renaldi, Cindy Fuhrer, Jane Johnson, Pamela Jorgensen, Jane Kantor, Annette Miller and Karen Miller.

At issue is the board’s decision in May to cancel plans for faculty members to work five extra days at the close of the 2004-05 school year and five more at the start of the 2005-06 year. The lawsuit alleges the district, under state law, was required to give the plaintiffs at least 60 days notice of those plans, but did not.

District officials, however, say they were within their legal rights when canceling the extra work days.

“We just happen to disagree on how they’re interpreting case law,” school board President Mike Skala said.

Robert Lyons, an attorney with the Illinois Educational Association representing the plaintiffs, did not return a call for comment Friday.

The case is scheduled to appear in court for the first time March 22 in front of Judge Michael Sullivan.