Attack on (teachers) unions 'a slap in the face' (letter to editor)

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.ledger-dispatch.com/opinion/opinionview.asp?c=204587

Attack on unions 'a slap in the face'

Friday, January 26, 2007

- Susan Ross, Plymouth Elementary teacher

Ledger Dispatch Publisher Jack Mitchell, I appreciate the support you have given teachers and local schools over the years. You've shown that you appreciate the efforts we make to educate our community's children. However, in your recent editorial condemning our local teachers union rejection of a proposed pay raise, you let your personal biases against unions get in the way of the facts.

Local teachers rejected the 3.5 percent salary increase offered by the Amador County Unified School District because the district received an 8.28 percent Cost of Living Adjustment increase of ongoing funding from the state this year.

Calaveras County schools received a similar percentage increase and agreed to raise teacher pay by 6 percent. A veteran teacher in Calaveras makes $5,000 to $7,000 more per year than a veteran teacher in our district. In order to keep dedicated, highly trained teachers here in Amador, our teacher salaries must remain competitive.

You commented that the teachers should accept what the district can "afford." We couldn't agree more. But how does one figure out exactly what that is? Fortunately, there is a mechanism for that in state law: the collective bargaining process. That process will objectively determine what affordable means in this case, and we will work with the school district to reach an agreement. We're interested in fair, competitive pay, not bankrupting the schools.

Your editorial also mentioned the school calendar. The number of school days and classroom minutes are mandated by the state. The school district, teachers and other district employees have agreed to the current school calendar, which certainly affects our lives as much as it does your own. And just like pay, the calendar can be changed through the bargaining process.

Your attack on unions is a slap in the face of all hard-working local union members. Local union members build new homes, run our courts, check out our groceries, grade and pave our highways, care for us in the hospital, deliver goods to local businesses, and yes, teach our children.

All workers, union or otherwise, benefit from the hard-won efforts of the labor movement: the 40-hour work week, workplace safety standards, health benefits, retirement plans, vacations, holidays, sick days and more. Most people take these things for granted today, but in recent years we've seen efforts to whittle them away. Without the collective vigilance of labor unions, workers could well see those basic rights vanish.

In addition, union pay and benefits lift the pay and benefits of nonunion workers. Economic development means lifting working people up to better support their families, not bringing people down to the lowest possible pay and benefit level.

And shame on you for using stereotypes to try to make your case. Our local, state and national teachers unions are made up of teachers, nurses, librarians, counselors and in some school districts, support staff.

In Amador County, those people are your neighbors, your subscribers and the people to whom you entrust the daily care of your children. We choose teaching instead of higher-paying professions because we believe in the importance of public education. Our local teachers union works to negotiate a good contract that improves teaching and learning conditions, important to students as well as teachers. And our efforts are paying off, as seen in the Amador County Unified School District's high and increasing test scores - rare in California.

Unions are democratic institutions, too. Teachers union members throughout the state and country meet in representative assemblies to shape and support education legislation as advocates for a free, quality public education for all children. Our union dues provide for bargaining support, legal protection, professional development, education advocacy, school improvement and other member benefits.

As a long-term teacher who has dedicated her life to Amador County's children, I believe we teachers are getting a fantastic return for our dues. And as a long-time member of our community, I can also vouch for the benefit to our county's children, families and employers.