After Catholic schools and churches closed due to the coronavirus outbreak, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles urged parishes to continue paying their staff.
Those employees had accepted meager salaries for years, it said, and now wasn’t the time to abandon them.
“These people have responsibilities, have families. You’ve got to think of that,” Msgr. Albert Bahhuth, the vicar general for the archdiocese, said in a March 24 webinar. “If we lay them off, if we stop paying them, what’s going to happen to them?”
That didn’t stop St. Andrew Catholic Church and its school in Pasadena from going ahead with their furlough, without pay, of more than a dozen workers, a decision Father Marcos Gonzalez said was prompted because there was “no income to pay the employees.”
Workers, who spoke with the Los Angeles Times on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said they worried about being able to pay their bills and expressed disillusionment with the church.
Days after St. Andrew Catholic School closed on March 13, church employees said, Gonzalez directed the principal to furlough nine workers. At the parish, three full-time and four part-time staffers were furloughed.
In an email to The Times, Gonzalez confirmed that most of the nonteaching personnel at the school had been furloughed and that everyone at the parish was furloughed, “except one part-time bookkeeper since the church and office are closed.”
“This was a very sad decision but required since we have no regular collections so there is no income to pay the employees,” Gonzalez said.
The parish has not applied for a loan, but may do so in the future, according to Gonzalez.
“The suggestion from Msgr. Bahhuth was not practical for us as we have no savings and only recently had started to balance our budget after paying off debt, which I inherited when I was appointed pastor last July,” he said.
Full story at LA Times.
These employees should be the pastors’ first priority, especially before diocesean assessments.
Getting a government-sponsored loan to pay salaries is not something to think about in the future. The good Father needs to get his ducks in a row and be ready to apply the minute the website comes up. It is a no-interest loan that will be forgiven if the money is used to pay employees.
I’ve known Fr. Gonzalez for a long time, and he would never intentionally hurt anyone. He obviously doesn’t have the money so I sent a donation. It’s a difficult time for everyone, and I choose not to judge the situation, just to help in the way that I can.
It is important always to get the facts straight especially when dealing with stories about the Catholic Church in the Los Angeles Times. I’m sure you and your readers must be aware of this.
The Times story, while using my quotes, was not a complete story. Selective quotes with people with personal agendas never make for objective journalism.
Our school has been continually functioning online just like all other Catholic schools in the state of California since all schools were ordered closed. Our students have not gone without an education one single school day. All of our teaching staff has continued to work and our teachers have all been receiving their full salary and benefits as usual.
The “loan” referred to in the article is not from the federal government. It is from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The Archdiocese has clarified that we ought not to apply for any federal loans as we may not be eligible and for other reasons as well.
Questions of furloughing staff are always tremendously difficult. A brief survey of all companies and churches in California (and throughout the country) will tell you that this is not at all unique to us but is a terrible decision which is being made across the board and all over the state and country. It is a terrible situation that all churches are in due to the closure of churches and the disappearance of Sunday collections. Remember that churches are entirely dependent on the weekly collection. We have no other income.
Our priorities are always people. Archdiocesan assessments have been suspended for the time being so this is not a concern. We will always put people first but we must also be prudent stewards of resources and not spend money that does not exist. The Archdiocese is being very flexible and generous regarding loaning parishes money to pay employees and we will avail ourselves of that assistance as needed.
It would have been nice if your reporters would have had at least the courtesy of contacting the parish prior to simply reprinting a story from an unreliable source such as the Los Angeles Times. I’m frankly rather surprised at you.
Father Marcos, I read this article knowing that no way would you have undertaken such an action lightly, and I also know that of course your regular teachers/staff necessary for the implementation of online learning would not be furloughed. Just wanted you to know that at least one reader knows this article doesn’t tell the full story. I wish you and your beautiful parish/school (and all Archdiocesan parishes/schools) well. and may God shower His blessings on you.
Thank you!
Fr. Marcos Gonzales, thank you so much for responding. It is again the age of yellow journalism although now it is called click bait. We are grateful for you and all the priests and bishops that are making difficult decisions in this situation. We are praying for the pandemic to cease and for everyone’s protection and healing. May God bless you.
Anonymous, well said AMEN !
Fr. Gonzales , thank you for the clarification, the Times is a news source whose credibility and quality of reportage has been on the decline. As a laymen I fault the hierarchy of this diocese,they lack the moral authority needed to help and comfort the faithful. The abuse of trust , lies ,obfuscation and contempt for the concerns of the laity has been well documented. The waste in money and sanctity in the LA REC is beyond disgusting,the assessments to my mind are the “mahoney” tax , because of the lifting of the statute of limitations. The leadership during this crisis has been AWOL,why are they not rallying the faithful ?.God bless you and your parish .
When I see an article like this, I can’t help but lament the collapse of the dedicated religious orders that I witnessed in the late 1960s.
I remember the beaming faces of those beautiful nuns who taught me in grade school, who gave up everything — a husband/family/home, cars, vacations — to help teach young souls to know, love and serve God in this world to be happy with Him forever in the next. There was no paycheck; they weren’t employees. They trusted entirely in God, and He provided for them.
After the dread Council, something convinced them that what they and their predecessors had done for over 500 years was wrong.
Then the convent emptied when the school closed, and 10 years later, so did the parish.
I’m sympathetic for Fr. Gonzalez and other pastors whose intentions are good. However, there is a disparity in the way church employees are treated. Lay pastoral ministers seem to be the first to be laid off or have their salaries slashed, while Catholic school teachers are not subjected to the same reductions. Some pastors have no control over “parish” schools. Year ago, a priest friend told me he wanted to treat all his staff the same, since, when they opened the school, they considered it and promoted it as an extension of the parish’s ministry. Yet, he was directed by the bishop to actually increase teacher salaries, while he had to lay off pastoral ministers. This raises a fundamental question: are our parishes primarily churches, with associated schools? Or, vice-versa? The overwhelming majority of Catholic children attend public schools, other private schools or are home schooled. This is a justice question that rarely gets asked, due to the disproportionate influence of Catholic schools. Is the tail wagging the dog?