Josh Smith, Chief Communications Officer at New Hanover County Schools, said there was a verification issue with the payment information of 150 to 200 employees, mostly new hires. To rectify this, physical checks were driven out to separate schools Thursday and given to staffers who didn’t receive their payment, said Christopher Barnes, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources at New Hanover County Schools.
For some of those newer employees, the issue was fixed and the payment should come through Thursday. According to Barnes, the 70 to 75 others who still haven’t received payments should have received those physical checks Thursday.
This incident was caused by several factors, Smith said: the first payment cycle always involves some snags, and there were more this year because there were more new hires.
Some employees had concerns about back pay or a raise they received in July that was supposed to come through this month. That amount was paid Aug. 31 in some cases instead of with the employee’s usual paycheck, which often arrives the day before, Smith said, which could’ve also raised alarm.
Smith and Barnes said employees with concerns should bring those to the human resources and finance departments.
