Illinois Teachers' Unions sell out.

[Hannah Bell]

Less than a week ago, thousands of union teachers were marching and rallying in solidarity with their brothers and sisters from Wisconsin at the WE ARE ONE rally in Chicago. But after yesterday's deal, cut between the state's union leaders and corporate reformers, all that militant solidarity talk seems as old and stale as a presidential campaign speech. I'm not sure what, if anything, teachers, kids or parents got out of yesterday's deal...But here's an early look at what was given up--apparently without even much of a fight:

Limitations on the right to strike, especially in Chicago...Longer official work day for teachers without assured additional pay...No more job security for teachers. Tenure has been all but eliminated when it comes to firings and laying off teachers...Teacher pay and firings will be tied to student standardized test scores...It looks like it even limits collective bargaining to pay and work hours...

What makes this especially troubling (and enlightening) is that this latest attack on teachers' collective bargaining rights wasn't made by a Tea Party governor or even by Michelle Rhee. It was a deal brokered by Lightford and supported by the state's Democratic machinery and cheered on by Arne Duncan...

IEA spokesman Charlie McBarron confirmed the IEA, the Illinois Federation of Teachers and the Chicago Teachers Union “are in agreement with the final product.” He went so far as to say the deal, “puts kids first and will move education forward. We are proud that reforms that we supported, that we brought to the table, are part of this bill.”

http://michaelklonsky.blogspot.com/2011/04/big-victory-for-corporate-reformers-in.html


OK, so what happened to karen lewis's "fighting" chicago union? It sounds like they folded without any fight whatsoever.

Huge loss.

One teacher's take:

Destruction of school collegiality will be the end result of this grand sell-out of seniority in IL by our union leadership.

http://twitter.com/fklonsky/statuses/58626216722300929


I was driving home today and listening to WBEZ, the Chicago public radio station.

They were reporting on the sellout agreement between the teachers unions and the anti-union Stand for Children and the corporate Advance Illinois. The agreement, which is now fast tracking its way through the Illinois General Assembly, restricts teacher strikes, making the threat of a strike almost useless as a bargaining tool, and ending Last In, First Out as a policy during reduction in force (RIF) when there are enrollment declines or budget restrictions.

The WBEZ reporter quoted IEA President Ken Swanson as saying that any opposition to this agreement from teachers inside the IEA came from traditional teachers.

Traditional teacher. That would be me. I think experience matters. I think fairness matters. I think a collegial relationship among teachers in a building matters. I think agreements made between teachers and local school boards matter....

Swanson has not only adopted the substance of those who oppose us. He has adopted their language as well. They call us defenders of the status quo. He tries to marginalize us by calling us traditional teachers.

http://preaprez.wordpress.com/2011/04/14/swanson-slams-us-as-traditional-teachers/