Road to a strike? - Take Two

Still no contract. Some members are calling for a new bargaining team.

Here are some comments -

What will it take for the average teacher in this district to appreciate the fact that the district does not respect our time and talent?

I believe that the district administrators have absolutely NO CLUE as to how much time and energy their edicts demand of us, usually at the expense of student learning

I am tired of the extra work, paperwork, documentation, and "extras" that have been imposed on us, while we continue to get that low amount of tri money.

The district is making us look like a bunch of greedy money grubbing folks in the press and we need to speak up loud and clear!

Differing view(s):

This is a difficult letter to write. I feel very betrayed by the (local).

Still no end in sight.

A strange but fascinating event took place in my district (22k students) within the last week. Here is the short version; teachers started to talk to each other (ok e-mail) about what is important for our profession and the direction our local needs to take.

I'm posting (no names) some of the interesting comments from people. Most I have never heard of. What started this reaction was a district/union wide e-mail from the local president,one person replied ...to all. This domino-dialogue effect was a thing of beauty.

I'll title this The Genesis of a Strike?

AS OF MONDAY, OCTOBER 1 OUR CURRENT CONTRACT (CPA) WILL HAVE EXPIRED!!!!!!!

It is our expectation that the district will honor the provisions of the 2003-2005 contract until we have concluded our negotiations.


Reply 1 -

I'm very disappointed in this message. It was my understanding that when our contract expired there would be a course of action in place. i.e. work slow down. I think the message that we are sending the district is that they can hold tight because we (teachers) don't have the guts to do anything about it. We'll end up accepting their offer. I've taught for this district for 34 years and I'm tired of being ignored. If we're not willing to take a serious stand, then we might just as well cave in and accept their offer right now. The district is not taking us seriously because WE are not taking ourselves seriously. It's time to do something drastic and I don't mean wear blue on Monday!!

Reply 2 -

I am glad to see that I am not the only one who is frustrated by the action that is being taken. Clearly we are not being taken seriously in our requests.

# 3 -

I think this is how a majority of the teachers feel. We can only be over loaded for so long before it not only effects teacher morale but also the quality of education our kids get.

Remember this e-mail strand is going to EVERY teacher in our district (and admins).


#4 -

I have to agree with you. The term I have heard in the past from (local) is " This is the best we can do". This is not acceptable. Take at look at (neighboring district) bargaining. It puts us to shame. They even have a new Superintendent that supports the teachers. (local) really need to see what neighbor is doing. I have approached the local and asked if they have seen what neighbor School District has been accomplished in their agreement and taken a look at what the new superintendent is doing. The answer was at the end of August., " no we haven't " In the past they have supported myself in some issues. But they have fallen short in the area of bargaining. The District knows we are weak. Wearing blue says absolutely nothing to them. We need some real voices out there and it's not happening

#5 -

I am a new hire with the district this year and have the benefit of experiencing the power of working to the contract in a previous district. In my opinion, it is the only way to get the attention needed to make positive change. If the district thinks they can get free work out of us, they will continue to expect it. Let's change their mind on the matter by starting a peaceful protest. Working to our contract can be a revolutionary act. This is what I am planning to do.

# 6-9 - All basically said the same thing

I couldn't agree more. Our continued acquiescence can be only be interpreted and lack of resolve to make serious changes.

I propose YES, LET US ALL WORK TO THE CONTRACT starting MONDAY or TUESDAY

# 10 - The tide turns

This is NOT how I feel. When I signed on to be a teacher I did so knowing that the hours would be long, the pay less than others with a similar educational background, and the rewards worth every hour I put in. I will NOT be joining any 'Work to the Contract' movement as I would not be able to deliver quality instruction to those in the district who matter the most - our STUDENTS.

We continually ask our students to put in extra work - to give up their free time in order to sign up for intramural and study clubs to help bring their mastery of the subject material up to proficiency, yet when asked to do the same ourselves, many of us whine, snivel, and gripe that we aren't being compensated enough. How, then, can we continually ask our students to do what we ourselves seem so unwilling to do?


To be continued...