Holiday mail delays Philly teachers’ paychecks

Some Philadelphia teachers received late paychecks for Christmas.

About 15 percent of Philadelphia School District employees don’t have direct deposit. In the post office’s holiday crush, many of the checks bound for those workers were delayed by several days.

That caused headaches for some. Among them was Josh Kallen, a technology instructor at William H. Hunter Elementary School. He still gets his paper paychecks delivered in the mail.

“We were kind of counting on that last check, just to ease the holiday spending a little bit,” Kallen said Wednesday. “And you know, fortunately because my wife and I both work, we don’t have zero dollars in the bank, but it threw everything off.”

Kallen received his paycheck on Christmas Eve.

School district spokesman Fernando Gallard said the school district sent out its checks on schedule. He said the school district encourages people to bypass the mail and sign up for direct deposit.

“I run the risk I guess because I do get it delivered, but there was no explanation,” Kallen said.

He said he knows he should sign up for direct deposit to get in line with the times; after last week, he may actually do it.