A Laugh a Minute ....

Amusing item in today's CCT; SEA President For Life Laura "Norma Rae" Carlyle complained that "It is very difficult when teaching is politicized."

She's right.

That was damn political of the School Committee to be out on the street holding picket signs, marching around town, crowding into meetings, making grossly inaccurate statements to the press, refusing to write student college recommendations, attend dances, graduations, etc.

What?

Oh, that was the union doing those things?

So the School Committee sat quietly through almost three years of negotiation without making any public comment and She thinks the Committee politicized it?

I'm not sure of the spelling for "delusional" -- so let's just call that statement what it really is:  "Bullshit".

Speaking of Bullshit, the CCT also pointed out that there was NEVER any tentative agreement between the union and the School Committee -- and that the Committee never reneged on anything.  The usual procedure is for the School Committee negotiating team to reach a preliminary proposal between themselves and the union which that  goes back to the full School Committee + 1 Selectman for a vote.  From reading the CCT, it appears that one night, while Killion was absent on business, Kangas brought back a proposal to the full Committee -- before discussing it with her own negotiating sub-committee.  The full Committee apparently laughed it out of the room and went on with their lives.   

Nothing was reneged on.  Kangas is hardly authorized to speak for the Committee. let alone bind the Committee on a three year labor contract.  In fact, if the School System was a McDonald's franchise, she probably wouldn't even be allowed to use the fry-o-later without management supervision.

I hope the union membership recognizes that a lie is a lie -- regardless of how many times it gets repeated.

There is one interesting item buried in the end of the MOU -- starting next year teachers who are not members of the Union will have to pay an "Agency Fee" to the union because they benefit from the Union's contract negotiation.  This is common in other places -- but is new in the Sandwich contract.

It's interesting because the people it affects (those that choose not to join the union -- or who left the union in disgust) don't get to vote on it.  The District agreed to force them to pay the extra fee to the union -- regardless of the employees personal beliefs.

On the one hand, it sucks that somebody who may despise the union's antics is now forced to fund them.  On the other hand, maybe this will give those who have been disgusted with the union the incentive they need to get involved, take control of their union, and elect some leadership of which they can be proud.

Maybe the Cape Cod Times could write one of their bitchy editorials about that idea?




UPDATE -- The Emptyprize includes a quote from Kangas that said, " ... she wished the final number could have been closer to what the average teacher on the Cape makes."

Huh?

I'm not questioning the amount of the raise -- only that a member of the School Committee negotiating team thought the union wasn't "closer to what the average teacher on the Cape makes".  According to the Mass DOE, the average Mass teacher made $68,781; the average Cape teacher made $68,102 and the average Sandwich teacher made $69,609 in FY 2010.  

This issue came up last winter when claims were made that Sandwich teachers were the lowest paid on the Cape  ... complete bullshit -- yet again.  I think I am seeing a trend.