The recommendations of a Jefferson County Schools task force have been implemented, and the reductions in force that resulted in more than 160 workers losing their jobs has been reversed.

The JefCoEd Board of education unanimously approved Supt. Craig Pouncey’s amended financial improvement plan, which reversed the cuts that were approved in his original plan to reduce system expenses by more than $12 million.

Those workers who were notified that they were being terminated as a result of the original plan will now be retained, and those who resigned or retired will be able to get their old jobs back by notifying the system in writing.

The only exception is for a category of instructional aides which includes 21 workers, but several of those affected will be reassigned to pre-K or exceptional education aides, after they go through additional training for those jobs. That training will be paid for by the county system. As for the rest, American Federation of Teachers local president Marrianne Hayward said that her group is hoping to work with the JefCoEd human resources department to find openings in other positions for them. 

Additionally, teaching units that were funded by the system, as opposed to those for which state and federal funding is applied, will still be eliminated. That cutback amounts to 70 units, but those will be handled entirely through normal attrition.

The original plan included reductions in force that resulted in entire job categories being eliminated, including office coordinator positions at elementary schools and instructional assistant principals at high schools.

[Updated at 3:25 p.m. to clarify remaining cuts to instructional aides.]