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OT: Teachers going on strike....

zerostepdrama's picture

So the teachers in our school district are most likely going on strike tomorrow. Both sides have already prepped for this...teachers have removed their belongings from the classroom, the district has hired subs and security and other staff.

I am stressing out over it... more then I thought I would.

#1 I am a big supporter of the teachers as well as what they are fighting for. However I will have to cross the picket lines. I have to send BS to school. I have to go to work. And he goes to Latchkey so I have to go to the school and get him. The thought of crossing the picket lines is making me stressed and feel bad, because I do support the teachers.

#2 Kind of stressed thinking about the chaos its going to be in the classrooms. Right now there are subs hired, but the district even said that the subs may decide at the last minute not to cross the picket lines. Also other union groups- food service delivery, etc in support of the teachers.

Anyone ever have any experience with teachers going on strike or are you a teacher?

Comments

Stepintime0111's picture

I was a teacher. We came close to striking one year, but never did. I would not feel bad sending your son to school. His education is important and the teachers understand that. Hopefully they will work out their differences soon. I can't imagine the chaos of a whole school full of subs!

Sports Fan's picture

I don't agree with strikes either. If they haven't reached an agreement, then their old contract terms continue. They don't lose pay or get anything taken away. They just don't get increases etc. It is status quo. All it will do is hurt the kids. I personally think they should just continue to negotiate and continue to work. I also agree with Melody that teachers are not normal employees. They are in essence public servants. The days of strikes being effective are gone. Striking is only going to cost the school more money and make them less able to afford to pay them increases. Schools aren't companies. They don't have unlimited funds and have rules they have to follow. They can't operate like normal businesses.

zerostepdrama's picture

The 2 main things the teachers are pushing back on are: class size (some classes have 30 students) and merit pay ONLY and that is based on test scores. Which I dont think teachers can control that 100%. No matter how good of a teacher they are and prep their students for testing, there are kids with no educational support from their own parents. Kids that go to school with no breakfast, no bedtime, parents dont help with homework.

zerostepdrama's picture

Agreed!

Sports Fan's picture

There may not be anything the school can do about the class sizes. They can only improve class sizes by hiring more teachers. They may not be able to do this due to their budget. I'm not sure what state you are in but in our state, the schools are only allowed to increase taxes by a certain amount and even then the school budget gets voted on. It may be out of their control. I understand the teachers' position but often times the schools just can't give them what they want. 4 months is not that long. Some of the schools where I live have worked without a new contract for several years.

zerostepdrama's picture

Originally one of the items was the teachers would have to pay for own healthcare, but they gave them that.

PokaDotty's picture

I live in Florida and my BD14 has 62 kids in her Spanish class with only 1 teacher. Apparently the class size limits do not apply to elective classes.

Some kids have to sit on the floor. Motivation to get to class on time I guess....

stepnicole2010's picture

If you don't believe in strikes, how can workers protest to get what they need?

moeilijk's picture

Some people truly believe that business owners take care of employees. Unions and unionized workers create problems, and unfairly get wages and benefits thus taking away job security from others.

Other people independently investigate the truth.