Supposedly, substitutes who work for Kelly Services become eligible for benefits, and their daily wages are a little higher. Has anyone actually worked for them, or have any second hand knowledge from those who have? They are not affiliated with districts in my immediate vicinity, but I can easily relocate about 30 mile away.
I worked for Kelly for about 3 months before I got hired full time. We were offered a benefits plan but I did not sign up for it because I did not feel I was being payed enough to have anything come out of my paycheck. I'm in Florida and I got payed 70 dollars a day (I have a Bachelors degree). After working for 35 days (I think) I got a 7 dollar a day raise. That was basically the salary cap. I felt that Kelly was very helpful and they were quick to get me set up to start subbing. I did feel that the pay was low, but I'm not sure what subs in other areas get paid. I work in a very large school district so I was able to find a job almost every day while I was subbing, so that was very nice. Also, I got hired in my full time job through contacts I made while subbing.
I work for Kelly Services. The pay will depend on the district; it's pretty close or around what districts will pay if they did it directly. Advantages: You get paid right away - usually on the following week. Most districts around here (SF Bay Area) will pay you once a month. Disadvantages: Limited coverage of schools/school districts. It is worth a try to break into subbing if you like. That's how I got started, then went to a couple of other districts directly afterwards.
I've been subbing 13 years and enjoy it immensely. What I don't like is the lack of respect and total absense of perks that come with the job. I am now experiencing my slowest period in five years, and our districts could not care less about how we feel about not working. If Kelly represents an upgrade, it sounds worth investigating. But i would like more feedback. For example, on average, how many days a week does one work? I have been averaging 165-170 days the last four years, but this year, I will be lucky to get 130. The districts really feel for me heh heh.
I have not heard anything from Kelly Services, even though I have met all the requirements. This is the second time I contacted them. Why are they not responding?
It might be possible that they are not taking any new subs. As oldstudent has mentioned, currently there may not be a lot of work around to spread to new sub teachers, hence they may want to limit the pool to its current group. This isn't too different from many districts who maintain a substitute pool - they may close it/open it depending on staffing needs. I only got into a new district pool back in November when they had a lot of teachers getting sick due to seasonal flu/H1N1.
I would not recommend Kelly Services. I went to an orientation and they are about micromanagement. All I heard was what you cannot do, you cannot sub in special-ed because of the "no touch" policy, which means: You cannot touch a child to assist them in any way, if they fall down, leave them there. that is what i was told by them. you cannot comment on a child's t-shirt or ask an employee for their e-mail address. you cannot answer questions about religion if a child asks you at a Christian school if you are a Christian, you cannot tell them. I had a problem with that, and told them I would say "Yes" because that is not a discussion. Of course they did not like me afterwards. this individual singled out Christianity for some reason, which is discrimination. They send an evaluation after every day, to check on you. I asked an administrator of a real school district and talked to two seasoned school teachers who said that their policies are over-the-top, and they are more concered about being sued than anything else. They steered me elsewhere. Fortunately I did not take the job and got a job in a real school district, and although I do not get as much work as I would like, there is none of this foolishness. There is a vast difference between a Yes or No answer, and a discussion. It is all about knowing how to communicate with kids intelligently and ending it! Kelly Services is not the place I would go, it would be way too stressful to feel that somebody is looking over my shoulder all the time. I know that evaluations go out on subs, that is how they know who is doing a good job, and who is not. I have no problem with that. But I will not be controlled by anyone. I work for a nice district, the teachers like me, and the kids like me so I will stick with them until something permanent comes along but Kelley, No. Also stay away from Teachers On Reserve.
Geez, how bizarre! How do regular special ed teachers in the districts they control deal with touching students? I also wonder whether these policies were developed by Kelly Services for all Kelly subs , or was Kelly merely abiding by policies set forth by the districts with which they work. At any rate, I appreciate the info and hope to get more feedback? P.S. Does Kelly allow you to be registered with non-Kelly districts, or are you forced to work only for Kelly.
Sorry to hear of your experience. My dealings with Kelly have been different, and I have never had heard something of what you've mentioned above. It could vary from place to place. I work in the SF Bay Area, and have gotten a number of special ed assignments through Kelly Services.
When I worked for Kelly they did have the "no-touch" policy, but it did not seem to be strictly enforced. I subbed in special ed classes as well as kindergarten classes where I helped tie shoes, gave high fives and even hugs (when I subbed for 3 weeks in a K class). I never once got written up by Kelly. They had optional evaluation forms that you could leave for the teachers to fill out. I would leave them but I don't know if the teachers filled them out or not. I only worked for Kelly for 3 months but I had no problems. Sorry that your experience was so bad
Does anybody know why they did not contact me? I contacted them twice, several months apart, and so far nothing. This is so frustrating!
I got your PM, but I can't send you a reply because your settings do not allow receipt of PMs. Let me know when you've changed it. Thanks.
<shrug> I would not comment on a kid's shirt (unless it were inappropriate and required referral), ask for an email address, or divulge any religious or political affilliation so the restrictions given above would not cramp my normal behavior. If I need to contact a teacher I give them my card with my number and email on it. As much as I would love the kids to embrace the One True God (ie, Flying Spaghetti Monster) I resign myself to the position they will have to find Him on their own.
In my area, we were told by one individual that there was absolutely no touching allowed, but then his boss came in later and told us that, in reality, you have to use you own good judgement. Obviously, they want you to help a fallen child (or try to catch them on the way down). We are allowed to receive hugs, but not initiate them. We are not allowed to work for any districts that Kelly operates in simultaneously. We leave evals of the class/students, and a sheet the teacher can fax back to eval us. The teacher eval on us is optional on the teacher's part, so I don't know how many actually get back to KS.
