Poor-performing custodian demoted

December 10, 2009

LARGO, FL — A Pinellas County Schools custodian was demoted following 28 write-ups for everything from excessive tardiness to lack of initiative, according to the St. Petersburg Times.

Scott Long, a white 20-year veteran custodian earning $40,488 a year, said he was the victim of a racially motivated black principal and a "crooked" district that "gave him the shaft," the story stated.

According to the story, complaints about Long came from three different schools, under many different principals, assistant principals and supervisors as far back as 1991.

After Long initially refused the offer of demotion from his position as head plant operator at Fairmount Park Elementary School, Pinellas County Schools Superintendent Julie Janssen recommended he be fired, the story noted.

According to the article, Long accepted his demotion to plant operator at Seventy-Fourth Street Elementary School, a move that will cost him roughly $11,000 per year in salary.

Pinellas County Schools officials acknowledged that Long''s case should have been addressed years ago, noting that it pointed out a need for the district to better track disciplinary and performance problems, the story added.

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