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Wayne-Westlands schools post school safety job that pays $12 per hour, parents raise alarms

By Camille Amiri and David Komer online producer
Published  July 13, 2022 11:04pm EDT
Westland
FOX 2 Detroit

Wayne-Westland Schools $12 per hour job posting for school safety officer raises questions

In Westland the question is being asked how much should someone be paid for protecting your children at school.

WESTLAND, Mich. (FOX 2) - In Wayne and Westland the question is being asked how much should someone be paid for protecting your children at school.

A job listing for a Wayne-Westland Community School safety officer was made on the Westland Community News Page. The pay, is $12 an hour.

"I think they should really do a bit better in terms of offering more money for that position," said Samuel Yalley.

"My children’s well-being and everybody else’s children well being is at crisis," said Rosol Ali. "And you want to think about $12 an hour  - it’s a joke, honestly."

The Facebook post racked up more than a thousand comments.

One person wrote: "Safety of the students is worth it! It's absolutely embarrassing to post this job at $12 an hour! As most are aware, school safety has become a huge issue with the rise in mass shootings. I would pay top dollar to make sure my children and students feel safe at school. I wish everyone cared just a little more."

Another posted, "My 16-year-old makes well over $12 an hour. Keeping our children safe should pay more than $12 an hour."

The outrage comes less than two months after 19 elementary school children were gunned down in Uvalde, Texas

That horrible day in May was still on the minds of Metro Detroit parents we spoke with.

"I was hurt, I was terrified, you trust in the people at the school to take care of your kids and no one expect anything bad to happen," said parent Melanie Henderson.

Some fear the low pay for the school officer here in Westland, won't attract a qualified pool of candidates.

"I feel like that’s a number you offer a 15-year-old or a 16-year-old, not an adult that you are literally relying on, to keep your children safe," Ali said. "That is just ridiculous, it doesn’t add up."

"I’m surprised that 12 bucks an hour is actually a talk at this point," said Yalley.

FOX 2 reached someone within the HR department from the school district who said the job post had been taken down. The posting was still found online afterward, however.