When Americans think about school safety, the national debate usually centers on violence, security drills, and emergency response. But quietly, another safety crisis is unfolding inside thousands of U.S. schools every single day — and it has nothing to do with lockdown procedures.
A new data brief from J&Y Law highlights how outdated school facilities, shrinking custodial staffing levels, and chronically low wages in essential support roles are combining to create increasingly dangerous environments for students and staff. The findings suggest that the people responsible for preventing everyday hazards — leaks, broken equipment, unsafe playgrounds, structural faults — are also among the lowest-paid workers in the education system.
And the consequences are showing up in preventable injuries, maintenance failures, and overwhelmed school environments.
Old Buildings, Delayed Repairs, and Everyday Hazards
Many U.S. schools are simply too old for the demands placed on them. The average public school building is nearly 50 years old, and a significant number require substantial renovation just to remain safe and functional. Across the country, schools are relying on temporary buildings, patch repairs, and aging infrastructure to accommodate students.
Plumbing failures, malfunctioning HVAC systems, poorly maintained playground equipment, damaged flooring, mold concerns, and moisture issues are not rare occurrences — they’re everyday realities. The problem isn’t just the existence of these hazards; it’s how long they’re left unaddressed. Without enough properly trained custodial and maintenance staff on site, “small” problems linger until they become serious risks.
Recent legal and safety cases — such as incidents involving broken fixtures, neglected leaks, and unsafe campus conditions — illustrate the same recurring pattern: maintenance backlogs, known hazards, and not enough people to fix them in time.
The Staffing Crisis Behind the Safety Problem
A major driver of this growing risk is staffing. Custodial and education support professional (ESP) roles are increasingly difficult to fill nationwide. Many districts report that non-teaching vacancies remain open for extended periods, leaving reduced teams covering huge school campuses.
Even where positions are filled, workforce demographics present another challenge. Many school custodians are approaching retirement age, while younger workers are not entering the profession at the same rate. Meanwhile, expectations and responsibilities have grown — but pay has not kept pace.
According to the data analyzed by J&Y Law, custodians and ESP staff in the lowest-paying states earn between $27,656 and $30,415 per year, thousands below national K–12 averages. In several states, wages lag more than $7,000 belowtypical custodial pay benchmarks, while nationally, support staff earnings have lost about 9 percent of their real value over the last decade.
In short: the people expected to prevent hazards, protect students, and keep facilities safe are often among the least compensated, least staffed, and most stretched employees in the school system.
When Staffing Drops, Injuries Rise
That shortfall has real-world consequences. Falls, slips, playground accidents, infrastructure failures, air quality complaints, and environmental hazards become far more likely when there are fewer trained staff available to monitor, maintain, and intervene.
Students and teachers alike are affected. Studies have shown that schools already report high rates of fall-related injuries, preventable accidents, and sports-related incidents compounded by inadequate facility oversight and delayed maintenance work. When maintenance systems break down, safety stops being proactive — it becomes reactive, responding only after someone gets hurt.
Legal experts point out that this isn’t simply an operational problem; it’s a liability issue. When districts are aware that low wages and chronic understaffing lead to delayed repairs and safety blind spots, they also know the risk of foreseeable injury rises.
Pay, Staffing, and Safety Are Directly Connected
The J&Y Law brief makes a central argument: you cannot meaningfully discuss school safety without acknowledging the workforce responsible for physically keeping buildings safe. Underfunded staffing leads to vacancies. Vacancies lead to deferred repairs. Deferred repairs lead to injured students and staff.
And those decisions are policy choices.
States and districts are now approaching a crossroads. Budget negotiations, union discussions, contract renewals, and hiring plans will determine whether:
- Custodial and ESP pay floors rise
- Part-time work becomes stable full-time employment
- Maintenance staffing levels return to safe capacity
- Or schools continue to operate with skeleton crews guarding aging facilities
A Safety Conversation That Cannot Be Ignored
This isn’t just a wage chart. It’s a map of which students get to learn in safe buildings — and which students don’t.
J&Y Law, a California-based personal injury firm that routinely handles school injury and premises liability cases, argues that improving school safety means recognizing custodians and ESP workers as essential safety personnel, not expendable budget lines. Their analysis shows how pay, staffing, and student safety are deeply intertwined — and why ignoring that link creates both ethical and legal risk for school districts.
For districts, lawmakers, and families, the takeaway is clear: if schools want to reduce preventable injuries, improve safety, and protect students, they must start by investing in the workforce that keeps campuses safe in the first place.
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