SAUGUS — The School Committee has decided to extend the district’s cleaning contract.
Prior to voting on the extension, the committee voted to enter into an executive session for the purposes of negotiations, non-unit salary increases and administrative contracts. After an hour-long discussion, committee members returned to the open session where the first order of old business was discussing the cleaning contract.
In a 3-1 vote, the School Committee re-upped the contract for a third year. Committee member Arthur Grabowski was the lone member who voted against the motion.
Grabowski was concerned with the cost, due to the fact that the school system was condensed by three schools. There was also a concern regarding the monthly cost of two custodians, which cost $7,400. Grabowski indicated that the School Committee already had a contract for day custodians in the schools so he inquired why the two other custodians were in the contract.
Pola Andrews, the executive director of finance and administration at Saugus Public Schools, explained that the cost was estimated and budgeted for additional services. School Committee Chair Tom Whittredge also explained that, when you break the numbers down, Saugus might actually be saving money.
“We’re taking out three schools for 67,000 square feet, but we’re adding 77,000 square feet to the high school,” he said. “They’re adding an additional 10,000 square feet to their price and it’s still the same price.”
The move to the current cleaning contract, which was first made in 2019, saved the district over $1 million in its first year, according to a previous article from the Item. However, the district’s decision to move to a private cleaning company forced more than 20 custodians to lose their jobs as Complete Cleaning Company, Inc. took over the cleaning duties.
