Worried about dirty classrooms, overflowing trash containers and less than sparkling restrooms, custodians for South Whidbey schools picketed outside the school board meeting Wednesday.

The custodians, all members of the Service Employees International Union Local 925, say they aren’t keeping schools as clean as they should be because of reduced hours and staff.

Custodians criticized the layoff of one of their coworkers, and blasted the board’s move to give administrative staff members big raises.

“The school board approved fat raises for the administrative staff while someone here got laid off,” said Dan Carter, president of the local bargaining unit and a carpenter for the district.

“We were told the reason for the layoff was lack of money, yet soon after the layoff we learned of raises to the administrators going beyond the state pass-through money of 3 percent,” Carter said.

Carter and 40 other members of SEIU picketed the school board meeting at the Intermediate School this week to protest.

Union representative Dan Gilman of the union’s Everett office said the custodial staff in South Whidbey schools is stretched thin.

“One custodian was laid off last spring and during the past five years, the staff has been further reduced by attrition,” Gilman said.

The reductions mean schools aren’t as clean as they once were, union members said.

“They take pride in their jobs, but some things just don’t get done,” Gilman said.

“We have to pick and choose the worst messes to clean up,” said Jesse Edwards, a custodian at South Whidbey High School.

“We’re forced to do quickie cleans, and that’s not enough,” Edwards said. “Over time the students and buildings will suffer.”

Superintendent Fred McCarthy disagreed with the union’s claim that district office staff received large salary increases.

“The director of business and finance did receive a raise in the 20-percent range, but his responsibilities increased significantly. He is my right-hand person and operates at an assistant superintendent level,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy said other raises were in line with other 3-percent wage increases in the district.

Picketers packed the school board meeting room.

“It’s not a choice between clean classrooms and students,” said McCarthy. “The custodian issue is just one of many needs in the district.”

McCarthy said the district was facing other funding challenges. Class sizes are large, the high school needs additional secretarial support and new band instruments are needed at the middle school and high school. The district is also facing a reduced student enrollment as it tries to build back up its fund balance.

Carter said the SEIU negotiating team tried to make it clear during the union’s last negotiations with the district that due to attrition during the last five years, “the custodian and maintenance staff departments are at a tipping point.”

“The district’s response to that was to lay off a custodian. That’s eight hours per day, 40 hours per week and 2,080 hours of cleaning that doesn’t get done,” Carter said.

Carter told school board members that SEIU members are the “backbone of support services for the district.”

“If you can find the money for raises, why can’t you find money to keep our schools clean?” Carter asked

The SEIU includes bus drivers, mechanics, food service workers, the maintenance crew and custodians. The workers are in the second year of a three-year contract.

McCarthy said he appreciates the challenges the custodians face, but everyone in the district is impacted by cuts.

“It’s my job to hold the line. In 2004, the district was 25 people over staff,” McCarthy said. “People were saying yes to good ideas without knowing the costs.”

At the high school, McCarthy said students and teachers are trying to help out custodians by picking up garbage.

Faced with a declining enrollment on South Whidbey, McCarthy said the district is going to continue to reduce over the next few years.

“We can’t hold onto all the staffing with the declining enrollment,” he said

In spite of the decreasing enrollment, the custodians argue they have the same number of buildings to clean.

“We clean buildings, not students,” Carter said.

“I wish I could provide a cleaner environment for students. I simply don’t have time to get even the basics done some nights,” said Edwards, a night custodian. “It’s frustrating because I know there will be a price to pay if the buildings aren’t kept up.”

Gayle Saran can be reached at 221-5300 or gsaran@southwhidbeyrecord.com.