In this time of economic hardship the teacher union in Chicago has decided to go on strike:
As many as 26,000 teachers were expected to stay away, with picket lines forming around the city.
About 350,000 students were affected by the strike in the nation’s third-largest district.
The walkout was called after all-day talks broke down on Sunday, following months of negotiations.
The two sides met again on Monday to continue negotiations, but failed to reach a settlement, meaning the strike will extend into at least a second day.
“This is not a strike I wanted,” the mayor said. “It’s unnecessary, it’s avoidable and it’s wrong.”
School officials said they had doubled the pay rise offered, for a total of 16% over four years.
“This is about as much as we can do,” Chicago school board chief David Vitale told the Chicago Tribune. “There is only so much money in the system.”
Considering the drop out rate in Chicago is roughly 40% I see no reason to give the teachers any raise. In fact I would argue they should have their paid decreased to reflect the poor job they’re doing at creating an environment where students want to come and learn.
They already get paid an average of $20K+ more than the average worker, at around $71K. They make way too much for such horrible teachers.
Rules about teachers and their unions:
1. If they say they are in it for the children, and not the money, they are lying. If they were really in it for the children, they wouldn’t need to *say* they were – there would be no question.
2. They will look for any excuse to blame for poor performance – “large” class sizes, poor textbooks, and so forth. Their favorite excuse is, in accordance with rule 1, “not enough money”.
3. Complaining about how much time and effort is put into your work is nuts when you are a teacher. Months off in the summer, and lesson plans that rarely change (and were probably taken from the internet in the first place), puts the lie to that. And yet, teachers will complain about this too.
4. Those who can’t do, teach. Those who can’t teach, also teach. They typically become school administrators and union bosses as their mediocrity is rewarded.