HOUSTON — Hundreds of Houston ISD employees are scrambling to figure out what's next after learning they are losing their jobs in just a few weeks.
Those affected include teachers, custodians, maintenance workers, mechanics and other personnel.
Outside HISD headquarters Friday, a constant stream of workers learned the devastating news right before Mother's Day Weekend.
"You're bringing them in like a herd of cattle and eliminating their position without giving them full detail," said Hector Morales, president of Texas Support Personnel Employees Local 1.
Morales said the district dropped this bomb on hundreds of his members on Thursday.
"Now, they're throwing me out like an old pair of shoes," said Anabel, a custodian with HISD for 10 years.
Maria Franco had been cleaning HISD schools for 23 years.
"They didn't even let me retire," said Franco after receiving her termination papers.
"They're in pain, that's their only check they have to support their families," said Daisy Lozano, VP of TSPE Local 1. "How will they do that? How will they pay their rent, feed their kids? Without a job they don't have nothing."
HISD didn't confirm how many people were impacted, but the unions said it could reach up to 1,000 or more staff members.
"Callous would be the best word, and I wasn't the only teacher," said Jose Cantu.
Cantu taught ESL at HISD for five years until Friday,
"They just cut me," he said. "They didn't give me a word."
READ: Houston ISD superintendent defends job cuts, blames end of COVID funding, performance evaluations
Union leaders said employees aren't getting any real explanations or answers.
"People are stunned," said Wretha Thomas, President of HESP 6315. "They're really stunned and they ain't understanding why."
The union blames HISD mismanagement for Friday's mass layoffs and they're warning it will impact every school in the district.
"That's the million-dollar question," Morales said. "We've asked what their backup plan is and they're not able to answer that today. I mean is management or the superintendent going to help clean up, I don't think so."
HISD released this statement in response to questions from KHOU 11 News:
Like most school districts in Texas and across the country, HISD is being forced to make tough budget decisions for the 2024-2025 academic year. State funding for education has not increased, and the one-time money provided by the federal government to support students during and after the pandemic is no longer available. This means HISD must right size the central office and find ways to operate more efficiently.
Many HISD departments are seeing a reduction in force, and that process has been ongoing since January. Superintendent Miles has said the District will keep cuts as far away from students and classrooms as possible and will continue to invest in our teachers and leaders. The staffing decisions being made by HISD will allow us to allocate the District’s limited resources in ways that will help ensure all students receive high-quality instruction every day.
HISD’s administrative team is actively building the proposed budget for next school year. We will have more information to share in the coming weeks. While we cannot comment on specific employees or positions being impacted by these reductions, many HISD departments are impacted. Employees whose positions are changed or eliminated will stay in them until the end of the year, and HISD will support them to find other opportunities in the District if they choose. Services to schools and students will not be disrupted.