T/E Teachers Union Turns up Heat on Board
The President of the Tredyffrin Easttown Education Association hints at possibility of a work "disruption."
Tredyffrin Easttown Education Association President Laura Whittaker (photo taken at the 2012 Conestoga High School Graduation, June 2012). Whittaker is calling on the T/E School Board to accept a fact finder's report on the teacher contract. The union has already approved the recommendations in the report.
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Tredyffrin Easttown Education Association (TEAA) President Laura Whittaker is calling on the T/E School District Board to reverse itself Monday night when it votes on a fact finder's report about unresolved issues in the ongoing teacher contract negotiations.
The state-appointed fact finder's report would essentially become the new teacher contract if accepted by the board at Monday's vote. The TEAA has already voted to accept Fact Finder Timothy Brown's recommendations. The School Board rejected the report by a 7-2 vote on August 9. Both parties would have to agree to the full report, without any ammendments, for it to become the parameters of a new teacher's contract
Under complicated and somewhat convaluted state regulations, both the union and the board were required to vote on the report before the public could see the specifics. The board voted in order to allow the public to see the full report and scheduled a second vote for Monday night. The board also encouraged and invited the public to reveiew the report (which was posted on TE Patch and is attached to this article as a pdf) and then comment on it during Monday night's meeting.
Public comment and debate on the proposal, which calls for more salary and benefits than the School Board has said the district can afford, has been vigorous and sometimes heated here on TE Patch.
While Brown's report essentially says the district is wealthy and should pay more for salaries and be more flexible with benefits and sick days, it also sides with the board on some points.
Saturday night the teachers union posted a new statement on its website calling on the T/E School Board to accept report and thus settle the contract talks which reached an impasse in June when the union asked for a fact finder to come in and make recommendations.
Both sides had the option of asking for a fact finder who looks at arguments and data presented by both sides and then comes up with an "all or nothing" proposal. The proposal is the report the board will vote on Monday night. Unlike a mediator, the fact finder does not try to facilitate or mediate negotations. If the fact finder's report is accepted by both sides it essentially becomes the contract. If one side rejects it, then it's back to the negotiating table.
Here is the text of the statement issued by the TEAA:
Board’s decision to reject impartial Fact Finder’s report further exposes its inflexibility
Tredyffrin-Easttown Education Association President Laura Whittaker is calling on the members of the Tredyffrin-Easttown School District board to reverse their decision to reject an impartial Fact Finder’s report intended to settle the district’s expired contract with TEEA members.
In the fact-finding process, a neutral, third-party arbitrator reviewed the contract proposals of each side and made recommendations intended to settle the expired contract. The review took 40 days. Once the fact finder issued the report, each party had 10 days to accept or reject the fact finder’s recommendations.
The TESD board rejected the report at its August 9th meeting, and will vote again on the issue during its Monday, August 20, special school board meeting. The meeting starts at 8 p.m. in at the Tredyffrin-Easttown Administrative Offices.
TEEA members voted to accept the Fact Finder’s report even though it contained significant financial sacrifices on their behalf, including approximately $500,000 in lost wages, a reduction in health care benefits, and a loss of tuition reimbursement for professional development.
“School board members have not met with us, and they rejected the Fact Finder’s report without having moved from the original proposal they gave their negotiator in February. They now have another opportunity to vote to settle this contract,” Whittaker said.
Whittaker urges all members of the T/E school community to turn out for Monday night’s school board meeting and make their voices heard. "Parents do not want their children’s education interrupted because of the school board’s stubborn inflexibility," she said.
“If the board would be reasonable and accept the impartial Fact Finder’s report, it would assure that the school year can start on time and without disruption,” Whittaker said.
The school board will hold a special public meeting Monday night at 8 p.m. to take public comment and vote on the fact finder's report.
The meeting is scheduled for the board room of the district's administrative office, 940 West Valley Road, Suite 1700 in Wayne, Tredyffrin Township.
Debbie Brewer Watson
8:38 am on Sunday, August 19, 2012
Ms. Whittaker, I don't think that you'll want to hear what the majority of taxpayers think. Have you been reading the comments on Patch? We are all suffering with pay freezes, lost benefits and some have lost jobs altogether. Now you are going to threaten a strike?
There are many young, willing, great teachers out there waiting for jobs. Maybe we should clean house and give some of them jobs. School Board stand your ground and don't give in to this bullying tactic talk of a strike.
TE Tax Payer
4:38 pm on Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Great comment Debbie. I would quit my job in a heart beat to teach kids. But I would not want to be any part of the teachers racket, I mean, union.
Polly
9:28 am on Sunday, August 19, 2012
I don't know what kind of sacrifice they are talking about -- lose of a way too generous benefit/compensation benefits that are way out of the reality of the economic situations? Go strike, Ms Whitttaker and all other in your camp, leave our children behind (and you do show what you really care -- tax payers' money for yourself only), and please don't come back -- there are so many well-qualified, young folks who are more than happy to get your jobs in this environment (thinking about more than a hundred applicants just for a vacant -- you do really think every one of them are less than any of you?????).
After this economic downturn, my husband's salary/benefit freezes and our health insurance keeps going up. I hold a full-time job until my boss lost contract and I'm keeping a part-time job now that only pay me with a hourly rate half of my lost job. We are just a middle class family who struggling in this environment. And we are so very angry at those of you who think you are above all and act like vampires (can our kinds' teachers just like those wall street bankers? yes they can, both of them only care about themselves and try to suck everyone else's blood until there's no more).
Yes, you can continue raise the tax, until we struggling home owners can no longer afford out mortgage and tax money and foreclose our homes -- then you lost your tax base and keep raising tax to make up lost revenue, and you lost more and more tax payers until no one else left to serve you.
Linda Smith
9:31 am on Sunday, August 19, 2012
I agree with the above statement], also teachers can supplement their incomes by working a part time job---or maybe we should clean house and give some of of the jobs to the younger teachers.
Joan Heat
10:23 am on Sunday, August 19, 2012
I agree with the above, bring in new teachers. There are plenty of teachers out there that would love to teach. I cannot afford higher taxes to pay over paid teachers! I am unemployed an extra year because TE does not even have full day kindergarden. Please clean house and you will see its the parenting not the teachers that make most of our children succeed in life.
Pete Tarver
11:03 pm on Monday, August 20, 2012
So after those teachers work for a few years, are we going to get rid of them because they cost too much, and just start all over again.
TE Tax Payer
4:43 pm on Wednesday, September 5, 2012
@Pete - that's not how the real world works. But at the end of the day, if reductions need to be made because of fiscal crisis and reductions need to be made, then yes, we may need to "get rid of them." Or get rid of some. Or freeze raises.....that is how the real world works. Lazy people love unions to protect them because they cannot survive in the real world on their own merits. With all do respect Pete, if you don't think it's fair, start your own business and control your own destiny. But be warned, you will have no union to negotiate with your customers. You'll have to sink or swim all by yourself.........man enough Pete?
Katherine
5:10 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
The parents run the sd. They need to stay out of it. Let the teachers have their say. How quick we are to judge. We are not in the class room nor do we have any say on how they teach to our kids where they need to be.
Ruth Schwartz
8:42 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
Part of the value of your home is the excellent school district. Teachers with advanced degrees and years of experience are more valuable than those without. Your children's education is equal to an expensive private school in the eyes of college admissions counselors. You need to compensate these teachers for all of their hard work. Have some common sense about how your money is spent, and what you value.
RenterNow
8:50 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
Ruth - they are paid very well, more than private and catholic school teachers - much more.
Working Mom
11:18 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
Common sense would be school vouchers.. Then I could use this tax money and send my child to the school of my choice. As taxes continue to increase I can not afford to send my child to a catholic or private school.. Where by the way the majority of the teacher DO NOT make as much money as our teachers. And even though our taxes go up - more and more programs are removed. The majority of the teachers do work very hard ( Its thier job) but guess what there are hundreds of students graduating each year that would love their job and would work just as hard. The majority of our teachers are very fairly compensated and have much better beneifts than the majority of the parents who send their children to school. Its time to be realistic and look around and see what is happening to most of the families in the district. We do have common sense about how our money is spent - its called budgeting and managing with what we have. My family does it every day.. but just because my raises don't meet the tax increase.. I still go in and do my job to the best of my ability because I prefer to have a job tomorrow.
RenterNow
8:46 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
As pointed out in another blog, whether you think teachers are fairly paid, overpaid or underpaid - it is really at this point a moot issue. The school district only has a certain amount of revenue and the only way to balance the budget (which they HAVE to do) is to cut expenses. I would ask Ms Whittaker, any teachers or anyone who has an opinion,what their plan to balance the budget is. The tax increase is limited by law, the only option is to cut expenses, correct? While the SD does have a emergency fund, those funds are earmarked for unknown and future expenses (which includes the pension contributions in future years) but it SHOULD NOT be used to pay salary and benefit raises.
Ruth Schwartz
9:12 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
RenterNow,
My point about private schools is that parents whose children attend T/E schools do NOT pay the $10,000- $20,000 per year for PreK -12 that they would at a private school that would earn the same recognition on their college application as a childe aht attends T/E schools. So if you do the math: 13 years X $15,000 on average, saved. This is what public school parents save, and should be compared to what they choose (or vote) to spend in property taxes over those same years. (By the way - you ALSO get that money back in the sale and sell-ability of your home, if you own. Either way, you save on your child's education costs.)
Fritz Madera
11:43 am on Monday, August 20, 2012
Ruth , what you say above is correct but the previous poster was pointing out that the teachers are well paid. I looked at the salary database and there are numerous teachers in the elementary schools making $101,200. I can see that level at the High School level for certain teachers but teaching K-3 does not justify that salary just because you have been doing it for 30 years.
Joan Heat
12:08 pm on Monday, August 20, 2012
Actually the value of my home fell while my taxes are still raised so I guess its the school districts fault the value dropped? Looks like they are doing something wrong if they can "increase" home values but all see is values falling..
Jenna Reese
11:08 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
Enough already! - We all work hard - those of us who are lucky enough to still be employed. I am sure there is plenty of unnecessary expenditures to consider cutting, pay freezes, teachers contributing more to their own benefits like everyone else - Don't forget, it IS a privilege to be a TE teacher - so if they aren't happy with the generous salaries and benefit packages they have, there are many energetic, new teachers who would be happy to take their places.
TE Tax Payer
4:47 pm on Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Amen Jenna! Being a teacher IS a privilege. If they don't feel like they are being fairly compensated they are allowed to leave and find a new job. It's a job, not a jail sentence.
Berwyn Neighbor
11:16 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
Ruth
You are misinformed. Taxes are not tuition. This is about taxpayers, 75% of whom do not have kids in the schools. This is about a tenured job with an average salary of over $80,000 a year for 191 days of 7 1/2 hour days. 1,450 hours. This is about a health care plan that costs $20,000 to the employer for a family plan. This is about a retirement contribution that in the most recent year was 8.65% of salary on behalf of the employee. Next year that number is 12.36% of salary. The next year is 16.75%.....and in the school year 2019/20, is projected to be 28.04%.....and that is because the actuarial numbers were played to presume a 7.5% annual return (My CD pays a little under 1%). The retirement is a DEFINED BENEFIT -- which means that every tenured teacher who is part of the retirement system will earn 2.5% of their highest 3 years average for every year they teach. 40 years = 100%
Ms. Whittaker was hired by this district in August of 2001. She currently earns $86,400 base salary. When the just expired contract began, she made at most $63,140. If my numbers are right, her raise over the last 4 year contract was $23,260, or 36.9%. Her cost shared on a $22,000+ health care family plan (if she has a family) is a little over $1,000.
Just working every year adds 2.5% to a pesnion. And who cares how much the district pays to fund it? Not our work force apparently. In the real world, meed $5,000,000 in savings to generate the average pension of $100,000....2%
Working Mom
11:37 pm on Sunday, August 19, 2012
This is not an inpartial statement: As an “outsider looking in” it appears to the undersigned that the District is relatively wealthy and that the School District is a jewel that provides not only a high level of education but also attracts residents to live within its geographical boundaries and thereby supports high property values.
Such should cause the District and its residents pause in considering any effort to underfund the District. Similarly, it cannot be the subject of honest debate that District employees have been and continue to face difficult personal economic conditions."
The reality is many of the families face difficult personal economic conditions - not just our district employees. And now there is a hint of a strike - really in this economy - I know not all teachers want to strike but will becasue they have too.. but if I walked off my job - there would be someone else in my place rather shortly. Its time for the Union to look at the whole picture and look at the "reality" of the finances of the district.
Maybe everyone's salaries in the "district"should be public and reviewed to see why programs are being cut, but we are still financing payroll and beneifit increases.
And then firgure out how to balance the budget without cutting programs or having layoffs - I am sure many people would be willing to take a freeze or small cut to ensur they have a job. Many hardworking people have already done this.
Ego_Death
10:49 am on Monday, August 20, 2012
We all know the pension plan created after hours a few years ago is unsustainable and will bankrupt the state and various districts. It needs to be changed. Private business has done away with pensions in 99% of the companies out there. Its time for the state employees to have to save for retirement like the rest of us.
Fritz Madera
11:51 am on Monday, August 20, 2012
I have searched all the comments and haven't seen ONE suggestions from anyone as to how the School District is supposed to come up with the funds to pay for increases or maintain the salaries, benefits and pensions at the historic levels. NOT ONE REASONABLE SUGGESTION! And the reason is that everyone in the union knows that STATE LAW restricts the amount taxes can be raised and that the school district is raising taxes at the maximum level.They also know that the School Board has cut every non personnel expense they could find and that the ONLY solution is to cut the number of employees or cut/freeze the current salary/benefit package.