Henry County Schools' teachers and staff frustrated over payroll delay

Some Henry County School staff won't be getting paid as expected this week due to the winter storm, officials said.

In a email to Henry County Schools employees, the district said that the freezing temperatures and snow closed all offices, delaying payroll processing.

What's next:

While the early payroll date was scheduled to be Friday, the district has adjusted the date to Wednesday, Jan. 29.

Employees will be able to view their paystubs on Monday.

"We sincerely appreciate the efforts of essential operational staff on our Finance and HR teams who are working to ensure the delivery of January payroll," the district said in a statement.

The other side:

The county's last-minute announcement frustrated many of the district's teachers and other employees, who said they rely on their monthly paycheck for bills and necessities.

A Facebook post on the Henry County Board of Education's page about classes resuming on Friday had dozens of messages from employees and community members.

 "Y’all are really funny telling teachers to risk their lives on icy roads on the same day you tell them they aren’t getting paid when you said they were getting paid," Henry County resident Katie Dunn wrote. "It’s bad enough that y’all pay them ONCE A MONTH (seriously, where else does that???) but then you mess up and blame the weather? No wonder Henry county can’t keep teachers."

Others questioned why possibly hazardous roads would prevent the county from processing payroll. 

Board of Education member Makenzie McDaniel wrote on Facebook that he was "deeply concerned" about the payroll issue.

"In 2025, living on one paycheck is ridiculous. It doesn't matter what used to happen, all that matters is what is going on now," McDaniel wrote. "To wake up this morning and see this message is gut-wrenching."

McDaniel said he would continue to push for teachers to be paid bi-weekly.

Henry County officials have not shared details about any future efforts their planning to make to improve the payroll process.

The Source: Information for this story was taken from an email by Henry County Schools, responses to a Henry County Board of Education Facebook post, and a post by Board of Educaiton member Makenzie McDaniel.

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