Some rough news for employees of the Tucson Unified School District – there will be no pay raises this year. Last year, teachers and staff protested several times to try and get a raise, and did. But that won’t happen this year, as the budget apparently has no money left over for raises.

The announcement was made at District Headquarters on Thursday, July 31, while representatives from various unions stood by with grim looks on their faces. About 6,000 employees won’t get a pay raise this year.

Linda Bachman, who represents blue collar employees in the district says her members will be hit the hardest. “We are the lowest paid employees in the school district,” she says. “The fact that there is no money for raises is especially going to hit our people very hard. We mostly work 9 and ½ months, so we’re not full-time employees. I’m hoping that the blue collar workers will understand.”

Not all unions have finalized their agreements yet, and there’s a contingency for teachers. The teacher’s union will talk to district officials in a couple of months to see how the district’s budget is doing. If finances have improved, they’ll negotiate again for raises.

Along with a lot of financial hardships, low employee morale is something School Board President Alex Rodriguez says the district faces. Superintendent Elizabeth Celania Fagan believes employees will be able to overcome that. The good news is that there will be no teacher pay cuts, and the district will not take away certain medical benefits.