California's Schools to Lay Off 25,000 Staff by Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles The Independent 4/6/2003 California may fancy itself as the fifth largest economy in the world, but when it comes to funding its school system it is a calamity. Across the state, 25,000 primary and secondary school teachers – 20 per cent of the total – have just been notified that they will be out of work from September.