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Chicago teachers to go on strike.

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Tokubetsu

Tokubetsu

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http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/09/us/illinois-teachers-strike/

(CNN) -- Tens of thousands of teachers and support staff in Chicago are set to go on strike Monday after their union and school officials failed to reach a contract agreement, the union president said.
"Negotiations have been intense but productive, but we have failed to reach an agreement that would prevent a labor strike," Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis told reporters late Sunday night.
Minutes earlier, the president of Chicago's school board said officials offered the city's teachers a contract including pay increases and other measures they'd requested.
"We've been as responsive as we know how," David Vitale told reporters just before 10 p.m. CT (11 p.m. ET) Sunday.

Vitale said the package offered by school officials include effectively guaranteed pay increases for four years, does not include merit pay and offers "some give on the evaluation system." He said that for nearly two hours, he'd tried to but been unable to talk with union president Karen Lewis.

"The average teacher will get a 16% raise over that (4-year) period" at a time when the city's fiscal situation is on edge, the school board president said of the offered deal.
The looming strike in the nation's third largest school system -- the first in 25 years -- will affect nearly 700 schools and about 400,000 students, including some from neighborhoods struggling with crime and gang problems. The union itself has about 30,000 members.
For them, that would mean the school year would abruptly stop soon after it started: Some students in the district began class on August 13, and more -- on a different schedule -- started on September 4.

"In the morning, no (union) members will be inside our schools," Lewis said, adding that teachers will march on picket lines and talk to community members.
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What the hell is gonna happen with all these kids on the street?
 
NO SKOOL? BANG BANG

tumblr_ma3usyzMSV1r3pf0x.gif
 
Fucking ridiculous. CTU is a joke.
Hope they realize how it's going to fuck them over in the future. My wife is a teacher, and her union (I believe it was) went on strike in the 70s. They still have trouble getting things passed because of people being bitter over a strike that happened 40 years ago.
 
I remember when Ontario school teachers went on strike for two weeks. Both my parents were working, so I hung out at a friend's house and we played videogames all day. Good times.
 
Kazerei said:
I remember when Ontario school teachers went on strike for two weeks. Both my parents were working, so I hung out at a friend's house and we played videogames all day. Good times.
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I remember that man. I as in like... 5th grade. I remember not hearing about it and then going to school only to find out there wasn't a single soul in my school. I stood in my school yard like a fool for 30 minutes before bailing.
 
Hieberrr said:
16% annual raise and 2 months of vacation every year? Teacher unions need to fuck off.
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The leadership of teachers' unions have one job: get teachers the best deal possible. They give no fucks about anything else (students, failing schools, fiscal realities, the general public), nor are they supposed to, and given the power they wield, it's a fucking nightmare for any sort of education reform.

A pity, because the teachers certainly aren't like that.
 
Cagey said:
The leadership of teachers' unions have one job: get teachers the best deal possible. They give no fucks about anything else (students, failing schools, fiscal realities, the general public), nor are they supposed to, and given the power they wield, it's a fucking nightmare for any sort of education reform.

A pity, because the teachers certainly aren't like that.
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The point of a union is to represent employee interests, not to get them the best deal possible. It's a fine line, but it does exist.
 
Karsticles said:
The point of a union is to represent employee interests, not to get them the best deal possible. It's a fine line, but it does exist.
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It's indeed a fine line. I suspect it's a line that becomes harder to find because it's easier for any group in a negotiation process to measure their successes in the salary, benefits, etc. gained (or conversely, protecting aforementioned salary, benefits etc. from larger cuts) than the more intangible gains that come in setting oneself up for a better position in future negotiations etc.
 
CTU Press release:


“Another concern is evaluation procedures. After the initial phase-in of the new evaluation system it could result in 6,000 teachers (or nearly 30 percent of our members) being discharged within one or two years. This is unacceptable. We are also concerned that too much of the new evaluations will be based on students’ standardized test scores. This is no way to measure the effectiveness of an educator. Further there are too many factors beyond our control which impact how well some students perform on standardized tests such as poverty, exposure to violence, homelessness, hunger and other social issues beyond our control.

“We want job security. Despite a new curriculum and new, stringent evaluation system, CPS proposes no increase (or even decreases) in teacher training. This is notable because our Union through our Quest Center is at the forefront teacher professional development in Illinois. We have been lauded by the District and our colleagues across the country for our extensive teacher training programs that helped emerging teachers strengthen their craft and increased the number of nationally board certified educators.

“We are demanding a reasonable timetable for the installation of air-conditioning in student classrooms--a sweltering, 98-degree classroom is not a productive learning environment for children. This type of environment is unacceptable for our members and all school personnel. A lack of climate control is unacceptable to our parents.
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“While new Illinois law prohibits us from striking over the recall of laid-off teachers and compensation for a longer school year, we do not intend to sign an agreement until these matters are addressed.
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Chumly said:
CTU Press release:
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After the initial phase-in of the new evaluation system it could result in 6,000 teachers (or nearly 30 percent of our members) being discharged within one or two years. This is unacceptable.
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It's not just unacceptable, but it's quite possibly a state constitutional violation of students' rights to an adequate education. Even though Illinois isn't a state with an education equity funding regime, they've still got a state constitutional provision mandating adequate education. A similar case happened in California, victory to the students.
 
dark_chris said:
I've put a link here so anyone else wants to follow up. This article has a few videos.

http://www.myfoxchicago.com/story/19487179/chicago-teachers-ready-to-strike-hoping-for-a-deal
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Goddamn, the comments:
if u never had a teacher u wouldn't be were u r NOW!!!!!!
and if u flunked school, that's ur lose!! with my teachers help i will be a writer and a great chef, they spend there money to buy us supplies we need for projects and have to pay bills like everyone else!!!!
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Also, people who play this whole dance as being "for the kids" piss me off. Just admit you want more money for your job like the rest of the world.
 
The Chicago school system sucks. My half-brother and half-sister both go to schools in Chicago and the shit I hear about baffles me. Although I think my half-bro is now in a private school, so hopefully he's not affected.

Karsticles said:
Goddamn, the comments:
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Good god, what the hell are the teachers doing?
 
Karsticles said:
Goddamn, the comments:

if u never had a teacher u wouldn't be were u r NOW!!!!!!
and if u flunked school, that's ur lose!! with my teachers help i will be a writer and a great chef, they spend there money to buy us supplies we need for projects and have to pay bills like everyone else!!!!
Click to expand...

Also, people who play this whole dance as being "for the kids" piss me off. Just admit you want more money for your job like the rest of the world.
Click to expand...

LMAO. I know he/she is trying to help, but it's not.
 
Hieberrr said:
My bad.

Teachers still have it good though, because you just know their union negotiated some serious benefits.
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If they have it so good, you should become a teacher. I don't envy teachers at all. My mother is a teacher and after 40 years of teaching she still makes less than many entry level computer science majors while having 2 masters degrees in education. Meanwhile, she has worse benefits (though cheaper), has to pay for most of her school supplies out of pocket because the state doesn't provide enough money, has to deal with overcrowded classrooms, parents that treat the school as a daycare, etc. Worse than that, most of the experienced teachers are exiting the system leaving the national average group for teachers with a median teaching experience of 1 year!

Yeah, they've got it fantastic.
 
Karsticles said:
Goddamn, the comments:


Also, people who play this whole dance as being "for the kids" piss me off. Just admit you want more money for your job like the rest of the world.
Click to expand...

I read that comment, my brain couldn't comprehend it.

This CPS thing is now trending on twitter
 
Phoenix said:
If they have it so good, you should become a teacher. I don't envy teachers at all. My mother is a teacher and after 40 years of teaching she still makes less than many entry level computer science majors while having 2 masters degrees in education. meanwhile she has worse benefits (though cheaper), has to pay for most of her school supplies out of pocket because the state doesn't provide enough money, has to deal with overcrowded classrooms, parents that treat the school as a daycare, etc. Worse than that, most of the experienced teachers are exiting the system leaving the national average group for teachers with a median teaching experience of 1 year!

Yeah, they've got it fantastic.
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Instead of comparing her salary to someone else, tell us how much she makes a year. :-)

Why would you get a MA in education twice?
She has worse benefits than who? Entry level CS jobs? I doubt it.
What school supplies does your mom need? What does she teach?

I would love to become a primary school teacher, but I would need to go back to school to get a certificate, and that costs time and money I don't have. It's a great job to have no matter how people swing it.

reggieandTFE said:
My wife works in a non-Union charter school. She's taking the day off and we're going to head out to the picket lines in the morning to support the Union. Screw Rahm and screw the billionaire corporate Democrats trying to privatize education.
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Do those still need state certification to teach in?
 
My wife works in a non-Union charter school. She's taking the day off and we're going to head out to the picket lines in the morning to support the Union. Screw Rahm and screw the billionaire corporate Democrats trying to privatize education.
 
Karsticles said:
Instead of comparing her salary to someone else, tell us how much she makes a year. :-)

Why would you get a MA in education twice?
She has worse benefits than who? Entry level CS jobs? I doubt it.
What school supplies does your mom need? What does she teach?

I would love to become a primary school teacher, but I would need to go back to school to get a certificate, and that costs time and money I don't have. It's a great job to have no matter how people swing it.


Do those still need state certification to teach in?
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Research man!
 
Here in Texas the general sentiment is that schoolteachers here are screwed because they're prohibited from being in unions.

Grass is greener, etc.
 
While I support pay raises. I am a firm believer in teachers needing to be more accountable performance wise and tenure needs to be severely weakened.

reggieandTFE said:
My wife works in a non-Union charter school. She's taking the day off and we're going to head out to the picket lines in the morning to support the Union. Screw Rahm and screw the billionaire corporate Democrats trying to privatize education.
Click to expand...

As far as most Education Unions and School groups are concerned your wife is one of the enemies.
 
reggieandTFE said:
My wife works in a non-Union charter school. She's taking the day off and we're going to head out to the picket lines in the morning to support the Union. Screw Rahm and screw the billionaire corporate Democrats trying to privatize education.
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Now this is where I dont get, and hopefully someone can tell me. What happens if it gets privatized?
 
dark_chris said:
Now this is where I dont get, and hopefully someone can tell me. What happens if it gets privatized?
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It depends on how the privatization contract is done. All of the teachers could keep their jobs with newly negotiated contracts, entirely new employees could be brought in, a bidding system could be put in place, etc. There are a lot of variables.
 
Don't more people die on Chicago streets than US active duty troops in Afghanistan?


So yeah more death in Chicago.
 
Karsticles said:
Do those still need state certification to teach in?
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Yes, charter schools are "public schools" that receive all of the funding from the school district. However, private entities receive a charter to run the schools. They were actually first started by the teachers' Union in NYC, but have been appropriated as a "cure-all" by "education reformers" who view them as a tool to privatize education, bust the teachers' Unions and help destroy the public education system.

The school my wife works at was started by a Corporate law firm as a publicity, charitable endeavor.
 
Karsticles said:
Goddamn, the comments:


Also, people who play this whole dance as being "for the kids" piss me off. Just admit you want more money for your job like the rest of the world.
Click to expand...

More money for more work. Makes sense. What are you a communist? Are you suggesting that these teachers should provide the state with educational welfare of the charity of their backs?
 
reggieandTFE said:
Yes, charter schools are "public schools" that receive all of the funding from the school district. However, private entities receive a charter to run the schools. They were actually first started by the teachers' Union in NYC, but have been appropriated as a "cure-all" by "education reformers" who view them as a tool to privatize education, bust the teachers' Unions and help destroy the public education system.

The school my wife works at was started by a Corporate law firm as a publicity, charitable endeavor.
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Thank you for explaining.

Zaptruder said:
More money for more work. Makes sense. What are you a communist? Are you suggesting that these teachers should provide the state with educational welfare of the charity of their backs?
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This sort of thing happens all the time, and it's always played off as being "for the kids". 90 more minutes a day does not equate to a 30% raise over the next two years.

Furthermore, saying that, during difficult economic times, people often have to make less money, has nothing to do with communism. When an already highly taxed city has a school budget that's $700 million in the red, it's pretty obvious that cuts need to happen.
 
Karsticles said:
Why would you get a MA in education twice?
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Because there are different specializations in educations. Its not one big blanket degree. She has one in Early Childhood Education and another in Child and Adolescent Development. There are TONS more that are MS not MA.

She has worse benefits than who? Entry level CS jobs? I doubt it.
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Then you know nothing, absolutely nothing, about the benefits of the public school system.

What school supplies does your mom need? What does she teach?
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Kindergarten, with the occasional 1st grade (though she has a strong preference for K since that is the formative year in her opinion - get that wrong and they are screwed for some time). Supplies include everything that needs to go into classroom, everything you're going to show in the classroom, etc. Teachers are given a stipend to outfit their classes, there isn't a warehouse of shit they just pick from every year.

I would love to become a primary school teacher, but I would need to go back to school to get a certificate, and that costs time and money I don't have. It's a great job to have no matter how people swing it.
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You can't teach with a certificate in most states - you're going to need to get a Masters degree in any strong public program. They'll give you time to get it, but you're going to require it to teach.
 
antonz said:
As far as most Education Unions and School groups are concerned your wife is one of the enemies.
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Haha, she's well aware of that, but the system in Chicago is rigged to help charter schools have first dibs on the brightest talent coming out of grad schools as they receive their budget in early spring and hire in April and May. Traditional neighborhood schools can't hire until June and generally hire much later in the summer. Her and some of her co-workers are planning on organizing into the AFT later this year (legally, it can't be CTU.) If that doesn't go well or she gets fired, she now has a couple years of experience in an inner city school and will be able to find work more easily in a neighborhood school.

She's going to the picket tomorrow because she knows what the future of public education will look like if people like Rahm Emmanuel and Penny Pritzker (a millionaire and billionaire whose kids have never stepped foot inside a public school, mind you) have unchecked power.
 
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