The Detroit Public Schools district has sent out layoff notices to a few teachers, all of them, or 5,714 to be exact. The district decided this was the best course of action amid the shocking facts that attendance has dropped more than 83,000 in ten years and they are in a deficit to the tune of 327 million. While layoff notices were sent out to all teachers obviously not all teachers will be permanently let go. Instead the district has until July 29th to reassess its staffing needs before the mass layoff takes effect. Due to the devastating debt the district has declared an emergency, a fact that could have major repercussions for teachers due to a law allowing the districts emergency manager, Robert Bobb, the power to reject, modify or terminate collective bargaining agreements. Whether or not Bobb will tear up current union contracts remains to be seen.
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