The President's home town and he has no comment!
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.................

Dtb....please back up your post by referencing any statement coming from Walker which claims that teachers are bankrupting the state.

"To track changes in retirement costs and compare employer contributions to retirement for public school teachers with those for private-sector professionals, we draw on recent data from a major employer survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor. These data show that the rate of employer contributions to retirement benefits for public school teachers in 2008 is substantially higher than for private professionals: 14.6 percent of earnings for teachers vs. 10.4 percent for private professionals."
Percentages include Social Security(6.2%)
Teacher Retirement Benefits, Spring 2009, Vol.9, NO.2
Robert M Costrell and Michael Podgursky
Lower starting salaries for better benefits.

916, our governor would have you believe that WI is broke because of all those overpaid teachers who are bankrupting the state.

Ezoner, you couldn't be more wrong and you're seriously deluded if you believe that 95% of educational spending goes to pensions. Can you explain the math behind this?

dtb......Huh? They haven't wrecked anything. They will be expected to take a hit, as the majority of the workforce has already had to do.......good day......

You obviously mean 5 Cents goes to education.... 95 cents to pensions and commitments -- you need to remember that portions of the money collected also goes to debt.

Ezoner, your understanding is wrong. That figure would be more like 5 cents.

why think -- maybe the problem isnt just salary based..... my understanding is the 71 cents of every $1 in school tax money goes to pensions in order to meet pastm current and future commitments. That doesnt leave much for paying, education, and capital (buildings). The problems are large and or educators are a small part of the total problem where public unions and politicians have corrupted the process into job security for both opposed to the primary goal of educating our children.

Apparently those darn teachers have wrecked everything.

http://luminouspage.blogspot.com/2011/02...

On the other end of the scale, a teacher who manages to drill in a few basic facts can show dramatic improvement in test scores among very weak students — from abysmal to only terrible — without actually teaching the concepts and ideas that would help the students learn more in succeeding years. So on both ends of the scale, New York’s system discourages teachers from doing what will help their students in the long run.

Do teachers oppose merit pay?

It’s hard to argue with the idea of merit pay, and perhaps even harder to understand why parents should care about it one way or the other. Tying meaningful evaluations to salaries should, in theory, reward teachers for doing the things we want them to do: build skills, teach our children to reason rather than simply memorize facts, and become better teachers by building on strengths and improving identifiable weaknesses. But the fact is that the largest-scale merit pay implementation, in New York City, has done none of these things.

Now in its second year, New York’s system has shown remarkable inconsistency. In some cases, the New York system gives a single teacher very different scores based on different classes, even though he’s teaching both classes the same subject during the same year. How would you tell that teacher what to improve? Skills-based tests penalize teachers who emphasize learning to think rather than memorizing facts that can be Googled. In New York, more than 70 teachers of high-performing students received scores placing them among the worst teachers, in large part because they taught critical thinking, and used projects to teach higher-level reasoning, rather than drilling skills: at the end of the year the students’ amazingly-high test scores were slightly lower than their even-more-amazing scores the previous year.

Chicago Public Schools starting salaries are among the highest in the region. That’s good news to parents who want their children taught by first- and second- year teachers. (Indeed, many early-career teachers are highly energetic and innovative, making up in enthusiasm for what they lack in experience and well-honed tactics. As department chair, I hired several.)

But the annual increases for teachers in CPS are much smaller than the annual increases in many suburban districts. For example, a teacher with a master’s degree, 30 additional credit hours, and ten years of experience, can expect to earn $87,513 in Evanston this year; last year, in Oak Park, a teacher would have made $88,978. In Chicago this year, the same teacher will earn $75,711 — about $12,000 a year less than in districts to which he or she could walk or take public transportation from a home in Chicago.

Over the course of a career, that difference amounts to over a quarter of a million dollars. This disparity should concern everyone, because it’s a primary reason why experienced teachers leave CPS to go to the suburbs — and why CPS has to train thousands of brand-new teachers every year.

.

This strike will eventually be settled and the sooner the better for all involved. And the end result will likely be more about money than about reforming education. The longer it goes on, the more it hurts Obama. Repubs are salivating at the idea of pitting teachers against Obama/Emanuel. When this is all said and done, how many CPS teachers will vote for Obama?

Why Think --- its disgust, disappointment. We are disgusted looking at a group that makes 2 x the average. Wants no measurement of performance, want benefits that are in some cases excessive (i.e. plastic surgery).

When you consider the corrupt appearance of the co-dependency between the public unions and government, and the data showing the offer and rejection, while leaving the kids out -- regarding their education -- however, in Chicago, it sounds like home schooling would be better.... Its no wonder that you get these kinds of comments. I dont hear these comments about police, firefighters ... people may not like those unions either -- but when the bell rings -- the commitment to protect seems to take over for those guys/girls. When it comes to teaching, the commitment doesnt appear to be as important.

“””The highest paid teachers in the U.S. want more at the expense of children. Who'd have thunk???
what a normal working week is for most, unless they are in a union

GREEDY UNIONIZED PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS = FAILING SCHOOLS

More greed from union teachers.

Arent these the same idiots-from the same political party that want to ban Chic-Fil A from investing in its community?

"You people would (or at least should) scream if someone not your boss came in to your workplace and said you would be working an extra 90 minutes every day with no pay increas..."
ALready do!!!
As well as most of the population!!
so they have to work 7 now or is it 8 1/2??
That would be awesome to only work 8 1/2 per day and have 3 months off.

We see now in Chicago the kind of union co-operation that we'd have here in Wisconsin if not for Act 10.

Maybe stop relying on public schools to educate your children.

Precisly why Walker stripped collective bargining from the hands of public workers. They say that this is for the children, but it's nothing more than personal greed motivating this. Who in today's economy would wince at a 16% pay raise (not even for a full days work/full years work)?

When your off for several months, 7 hours can be tiresome...
It's all about the kids don't cha know.
Apparently in Chicago a 7 hour day and 16% raise isn't good enough.”””

.
.
.
Perhaps “hate” is too strong but when I read the comments above… I hear jealousy and hate. Perhaps it isn’t jealousy or hate… perhaps it is simply IGNORANCE.

Sorry, George McGovern.
You know that I voted for you in 1972.

Have any of you worked where anyone got a 16% raise? The exception being a promotion to a higher position, but that is not the case here.
I think I'll ask my boss for a 16% raise and see how far it goes.

Why Think -- I believe my comment answers why the CHicago teachers had not had a strike in 25 years. The depednency of the union and the elected Dem officials is the answer. The leverage that each had with the other. Which is why they are in the current mess. Mind you -- there is enough blame to go around and the lack of creative solutions to improve the education of the kids. Government, teachers, parents -- all of the above. Money does not solve that problem. Unions -- these days are their own worst enemies. In todays economy, if the teachers would have chosen to continue to educate while taking a case to the public, they would have had the power of public opinion as a possible supportive structure. But instead, what they have done -- is amplified why measurements of performance are required. In the manufacturing world you have KPI's these measure whether you need to make a change in methodolgy, resource, design etc... I see nothing wrong with setting KPI's and linking pay to those metrics. SOme people need them, while others naturally understand and support positive direction.

It concerns me that as soon as you disagree with a position -- the interpretation is that there is hate. Constructive criticism and measurement of performance is not hate.

http://www.ctunet.com/media/press-releas...
Must be hard to negotiate with an employer who lies to, and cheats you.

Firing someone for factors beyond their control is unacceptable, in any profession. Using standardized test scores to evaluate a teacher is also unacceptable.

The cost per student in the chicago dist is over $12,000 and almost $24,000 per student that finally graduates. The Teachers union leader stated that if performance reviews were instituted that almost 6000 teachers would be let go. To her that was unexceptable. Wow what a comment.

I do not support the strike but strongly support ALL worker rights, including the right to collectively bargain.
.
That said, i would like to address some crazy comments made regarding this situation.
.
First, someone said this is why public worker unions are bad... It had been 25 years, meaning for 25 years the two side successfully collectively bargained.
.
Second, someone claimed this is why the actions of gov walker were needed... WI teachers are not able to strike.
.
Third, multiple people have pointed out the huge amount of money cps teachers make...most who support gov Romney, his millions and his tax avoiding offshore accounts.
.
Then, someone mentioned the "impossible" task of firing a teacher as an excuse for administrators allowing bad teachers to continue to be employed while at the same time teachers are ripped, with no excuse given, for the low test scores and high drop/out rate.
.
I would simply ask some of you to look in the mirror and ask yourself, "why do i blindly hate others?". Please, attempt to be honest enough to set aside your hatred so you can present a minimal level of consistency.

DTB,

You cite a poll of only 500 registered voters in chicago. Do you think this survery is representative of what Chicagoans or parents of the 400,000 kids who are not in school?

If less than half of those surveyed support a strike-shouldnt the teachers union capitulate to the 16% increase in pay and 25% of performance based appraisal?

47% of Chicago voters are in favor of the strike.
39% opposed. 14% undecided.

dtb, the info is from todays front page of "The Wall Street Journal".

I agree with Bill. Its both. They are so dependent upon each other that there is no way to separate. Responsibility for the mess is shared. If there were a more equal split between the GOP and Dems (as there is in WI) then the politicians would carry a heavier load. But in IL, its primarily Dems and unions in power. They share the blame.

Can't have it both ways bill. One or the other, which is it?

"Is it the teachers fault the pension system is unfunded? Or the politicians?"

Since the politicians in Chicago are little more than the union's hand puppets, the answer to both questions is yes.

whz_bng, can you back up your assertions? Especially "most of them live in the suburbs".

Is it the teachers fault the pension system is unfunded? Or the politicians?

I'm confused, people keep claiming that WI teachers can not strike, yet so many last year called in "sick" that school districts had to cancel classes. How is that not a loop-hole and basically a strike?

I would have had WAY more respect and listened to the teacher's point of view before they fake a sickness to get out of getting to school to promote their point.

what this article is not telling us is that only 15% of 4th grade students can read at the 4th grade level. Only 60% graduate HS. I am sure some teachers in Chicago love their job, but it sounds like most of them are failures at their job. Most of them also live in the suburbs where their children go to schools. With such a dismal record I cannot believe the union thinks they deserve a raise. Their pensions are unfunded to the tune of $50B. What a mess. But of course it's all about the children. I say fire them all and start over.

Profe,

You can take offense to my comments-the truth sometimes is a bitter pill-but they certainly werent offensive. I also appreciate your long term commitment to teaching, however, teaching nor any public sector employee should be immune from economic hardships and realities. Hard economic times are hard on everyone-including public sector employees. This includes firing poor teachers.

Your husband has been unemployed for 4 years? Why? Is he one of the people that Obama forgets about? that have "left" the workforce? I concede there is institutional agism in hiring-and that older people often find it nearly impossible to find gainful employment if they lose their job in their 50s. While I understand your plight and personally empathize-the school system is in need of reform-and its starts with how the educational dollar is delivered-and who delivers it. by the way, my spouse is a teacher and I know how much work comes home and how many hours -outside of the classroom are required.

ProfeD it seems you have been portrayed to be as ridiculous as some of the teachers we saw in Madison last year. Obviously by your words that is not a fair assumption, unfortunately to many just because you are a teacher they ignore what you are saying and assume that it is of the same variety as the irrational kind we have seen in this state. I know you don't need my defense however it is obvious some on here have not actually put any thought to what you posted, the fact that you were honest and expressed being grateful shows you are not of the same variety as many of the vocal teachers we see on TV. Why some can't see that in your words is beyond me and I apologize for the clear thinking intelligent people that are on this site, sadly the small handful of us.

The teachers in Chicago are the highest paid teachers in any city and they turned down a 16% raise... Wow. 76k a year before benefits, the average family in Chcicago is making 47k, and that is for a 12 month workload. The Chicago teaches pay only 3% of their healthcare premiums. Out of every new dollar set aside for public education in Illinois over the last 5 years, 71 cents has gone to teacher retirement costs. 15% of 4th graders are proficient in reading in the City of Chicago. There is a 44% dropout rate in that city, remember its all about the children. What leverage do these teachers have at all in this strike? Let them strike the kids are better off. What a joke. Good for Mayor Emmanual, it won't discourage the unions from backing him in the next election though, that ridiculous marriage between the Dems and the Unions is much to strong to be broken by this.

TCB....I took great offense to the following comment you made, "So you have not received a raise in 5 years (until today) tell that to the 23 million people LOOKING for a job-tell that to the parens to studenst you teach who have lost their jobs, homes, insurance, savings-that you as a public employee-havent had a raise. You will not find the empathy that you seek." What I didn't mention is that my husband has been unemployed for four years, so we ARE in the same boat as many other people. We live on my pay check (and it is pay check to pay check), there is no extra for any fun. Our savings account has been completely depleted. We have no insurance for my husband and pray that he doesn't get sick....he doesn't take his medicine every day as he should....so, please understand TCB I am VERY WELL AWARE of the economic state of this county. We are just happy and blessed that I have a steady pay-check that pays our mortgage and other bills. There is no tenure in my state, and our teacher evaluation process is very detailed process to try to week out the non-performing teachers.
Stubby....I don't consider my job conditions sub-standard. Sure, I would love to get paid for all the extra duties. I would love to have my insurance be 100% covered. That just isn't reality or should be for ANYONE. I teach in a large suburban high school and I am blessed to be here. Our demographics have changed tremendously over the past 10 years, but our kids are still excelling and receiving lots of $$$$ in scholarships. I am proud to be a teacher.
Eagle1 -- thank you for your kind words. We struggle at my house, but I am having another GREAT year at my school!

dtb -- 401k doesnt mean you must invest in stocks. There are other options including bonds and blended investments to provide the protection if you so desire. However, you should not be able to collect significantly more than is put in (into say a pension) where the returns on the money in the market would fall significantly short or where the time value of money interest would be lower than the future value of what you collect. Its all about fairness. Whats being requested in many cases is a fair payout. This is nothing new, politicians have made the deals for years and now they are at a point where they can no longer justify the pension payouts to the public. Union employees -- rightfully are angry, however, it should be the politicians on both sides they should be angry at for lying to them for years. The problem is they are taking out their anger on the public and the kids (if they are teachers) by striking.

As for eliminating a teacher -- the task is very difficult and full of process such that it makes it next to impossible.

TCB, tenure doesn't mean you can't be fired. It means you can't be fired without cause.

And 401(k)/403(b) plans are a scam for financial planners - they make big bucks off the frees while you hope the market goes up and doesn't crash (as in 2001 and 2008).

I saw a picket sign complaining that the Mayor is a bully. Glad to see that with just a little retouching, all those signs they used in Madison aren't going to waste.

Oblamer is back!

User Profile » GeorgeMcGovern

Joined: Sept. 10, 2012

Comments posted: 7 (view all)

Contact GeorgeMcGovern (log-in required)

Profed,

Im sure you are a great teacher; I had many great teachers in my experience in the Janesville School district. However, you know as a 21 year old senior in college, completing your student teaching what to expect as a public school teacher-salary and benefits. You will likely not be considered wealthy, but your fringe benefits often are much better than those found in the private sector-and therein lies the trade off.

Life choices present risk and reward. If financial gain is your sole motive-then you should not teach. Also, teachers should not be immune to economic realities. So you have not received a raise in 5 years (until today) tell that to the 23 million people LOOKING for a job-tell that to the parens to studenst you teach who have lost their jobs, homes, insurance, savings-that you as a public employee-havent had a raise. You will not find the empathy that you seek.

As someone who has taught 30+ years you may be 52 or 53 years old- assuming you found a teaching job after graduating from college. Also, I am all for paying good teahers more $$-but I am also for ELIMINATING tenure as well as defined benefit plans for new teachers (which would require increasing wages) and employing a 401K/403B plans. Lastly, teachers that simply mail it in, daily-yearly, should be thrown out-there is no room for unaccountability in education.

Prof -- I understand your hours and effort. What you should also realize is you described what a normal working week is for most, unless they are in a union. Somewhere along the line, unions transitioned from improving work conditions to getting everything they could, regardless of the fairness of what they were asking for.

A perfect example is the Chicago school teachers, making nearly 2 x the typical resident/taxpayer. But still asking for more. Unfortunately, they fail to see their excesses and refuse to understand that every additional $$ they take comes at the cost of the families and the very kids they say they want to teach. Additionally, their performance shows they are failing at their jobs. The literacy rate for Chicago schools is rotten at best.

ProfeD, thank you for your reasonable testimonial and honesty, I appreciate that you are grateful to have work and some benefits when so many do not. You seem to recognize that you are in the same boat as many of us these days and it is a welcomed attitude from an educator. If the extremely vocal educators in this state last year had the same approach they may have seen more success by getting support from us out here that are not living the high life as it was portrayed by so many. Thanks again good luck to your your family and your students.

Wow, Prof...just wow. I guess as long as people are willing to work for sub-standard wages and be exploited there will be employers willing to do just that. The working conditions you describe are exactly why we need public sector unions. I know you love what you do...I love what I do as well, but if my employer treated me like that, I'd be out the door in an instant. You sound like a great, dedicated teacher and you deserve a lot better than you are getting.

---

Chicago teachers are taking a huge risk with this strike, but it is, in essence, the same battle that is taking place in Wisconsin. The wages for Chicago teachers may seem quite high, but consider the cost of living in Chicago and you'll probably find that, in spendable dollars, local teachers do about as well. But, seriously....they RESCINDED the raises (violated the contract) and then offered half as much for a significantly longer work day and other concessions? Sorry, but this is clearly provocative by the city.

----

It also proves a point I've made several times. There are very few differences between Republicans and Democrats. Time to throw them all out an vote for an independent.

I hope that everyone will not compare all teachers in the US to those in Chicago. I teach in a right to work state (means no teacher unions) where we have state based pay. After almost five years with a pay freeze and no step increase, we were awarded a 1.5% increase this year. Not great, but a step in the right direction. In my state, I have 31 years experience and my salary is 49,000 this year...WOO HOO. I also live in one of the largest school districts in the state with a high cost of living. That 49,000 in other parts of the state, where cost of living is much lower, would be wonderful. Our insurance benefits are horrible, but we do have them with at 70/30, a $1,000 deductible (for employee only, $2,500 if you add your spouse and/or family, $650 per month to add your spouse and/or family, no dental nor vision included). As I said I am grateful for the little bit of insurance that we have. We work 7 1/2 hours with 20 minutes for lunch, and have six weeks "off" in the summer to take courses to get the continuing ed courses we need to keep our licenses valid. 70 hours (every five years) of workshops, classes, conferences..and the schools do not pay for us to go to these and many of us have a second job in the summer.
This week, today is the only day that I actually left my school at 3:30 in the past four weeks. Tomorrow's schedule will keep me at work from 7:00 am to 5:45 (that is not counting travel time), Wednesday from 7:00 - 4:30, Thursday 7:00 - 4:30 and then Friday night, 7:00 - 9:30 (pm) have to work the gate at the football game (no extra pay for that). Somewhere in there I will have to find time to plan, call parents, correct papers, and actually spend time with MY family.....want my job now? I am one of those "strange" people, I guess, because I DO love my job and LOVE when I see the kids get that ah-ha look on their face when they catch on to a concept....just wish that the rest of the world would give those of us who are in it for the kids a little credit.

TCB - there's more than one way to skin a cat and there are many ways to evaluate teachers.

As the city and school district are running deficits, money DOES seem to be an issue. And having a quality staff is always a big key to having good schools. I have no doubt there are some outstanding teachers in CPS. I also am just as sure there are many that could use improvement and probably quite a few that were once good teachers and are now burned out and hanging on for retirement. A good administrator doesn't try to find ways to fire his/her staff, s/he finds ways to improve them and inspires them to improve themselves. There may be the occasional lost cause but much of the time skills can be improved and quality increased to make the investment in a person pay off.

bill,
1. POTUS didn't support union rights in WI. In fact he stayed far away from the whole scene.

2. I'm not sure where you got the $47k number, but if it is correct, it's an average. There are a lot of people making fabulous amounts of money there and there is a lot of abject poverty as well. Do you want the people teaching your children to be scraping by or earning a decent wage (remember before answering that you get what you pay for)?

Do we have any idea what it costs to live in Chicago? Well, we know that the average wage/salary of the folks who pay the taxes to fund the teachers' salary is about $47,000. Since the teachers get about 160% of that, ($76,000) the cost of living in Chicago doesn't seem to be a legitimate point in the union's support. After all, a whole bunch of folks in Chicago are scraping by on a lot less.

The President has himself in a pickle over this strike. Who does he support? His buddy, the Mayor or his most fervent supporters, the union. He can't very well come out against the union after so strongly supporting union rights during the Wisconsin recall fiasco. Yet he can't undercut his former Chief of Staff by backing the union. I guess he'll do it the Chicago way. Pretend the strike isn't happening and when they ask about it, change the subject. Meanwhile, try to force a compromise in a smoke filled room somewhere.

dtb,

If scores are not viable method-what do you propose? SChool buildings are built with local tax dollars-which political party has OWNED chicago for decades? Arent these the same idiots-from the same political party that want to ban Chic-Fil A from investing in its community?

Seems to me that not having enough money is not the issue. Its a lack of quality teachers.

mteg, no teacher I know works 7 hour days. And if the Chicago teachers get paid 70+, they're earning it (do you have any idea what it costs to live in Chicago?). High pay in large city school districts is sometimes practically combat pay if you see what goes on there.

The 16% was to be over 4 years BTW. Granted, 4% a year is more raise than a lot of people get but the tactics Emanuel used to try and do a end run around the union are unacceptable. If he would negotiate in good faith he might get further.

mteg, the private sector has been remakably good at breaking unions for the last 30 years. Look at Mercury Marine or Harley Davidson for recent examples.

And is it the fault of unions if the private sector workers allowed themselves to be screwed over by employers instead of banding together for better pay and working conditions? Jealousy rears it's ugly head again. If I get paid less, you should too.

$81 per hour comes out to $123,000 per year by my math. (190 days x 8 hours per day).

MR, can you verify that $81 per hour? And I doubt you'd last a day in those schools.

TCB, there are other factors than money at play:

"Union organizer and former social studies teacher Jackson Potter said one issue the teachers are striking over is poor facilities. Teachers are upset that some schools lack playgrounds or libraries, while others convened in "sweltering" August classrooms. Meanwhile, the facilities budget for the city has been slashed.

But the issues leading to the strike have been building for quite a while, said Potter. When current Secretary of Education Arne Duncan ran Chicago's schools, he pioneered a new aggressive approach of closing down schools whose students performed poorly on tests.

"I think we're likely to see other cities going down the same road as Chicago," Hess said."

Accountability needs to be based on the job that teachers do, not on fators outside their control. Would you fire a worker for making a poor product if the raw material coming into the shop was of inferior quality?

Everyone knows that tests scores aren't a viable method of assessing student achievement, so why evaluate teachers based on them?

The average Chicago Teacher (one of the highest in the nation) makes $81.00 per hour. I'll walk a day or week even.

This is really a form of blackmail. You go broke paying me or your kid gets it.

You people would (or at least should) scream if someone not your boss came in to your workplace and said you would be working an extra 90 minutes every day with no pay increase AND your job evaluation would be based on factors outside your control.

Welcome to the private sector where this does happen...especially if your salary. An 8 hour day turns into a 10 hour day (teachers would have a heart attack if you suggested that) or even longer depending on the workload. Job evalution is based on RESULTS period. Employer doesnt care if you had the tools, the time, the resources, etc... they want results, not excuses. Becuase if you can't do it...then someone else will. That is how the real world works, like it or not. The difference between a successful person and an unsuccessfull person is that the successfull person is will to do what the unsuccessfull person won't. In the real world all teachers going on strike would probably be subject to penalization-forcing them to use vacation, plus work OT to get caught up. Any teacher striking for more than 3 days without valid doctor excuse would be subject to self-termination...in which case they would be denied uneployment benefits. Unfortunatly they don't live in the real world, they live in fantisy land where 16% raises, $70+ salaries, 7 hour work days, etc... are the Norm... Even a former GM employee would lust after this.

dtb--please don't confuse the union haters here with facts--then they wouldn't be able to worship their beloved rock star.

"You people would (or at least should) scream if someone not your boss came in to your workplace and said you would be working an extra 90 minutes every day with no pay increas..."
ALready do!!!
As well as most of the population!!
so they have to work 7 now or is it 8 1/2??
That would be awesome to only work 8 1/2 per day and have 3 months off.

Why is this Walkers fault???

DTB,

Please explain why unions are needed? If they are needed why do 90%+ of private business freely and openly choose to not form a union?

Also are teachers forced to join the union in Illinois? (i dont know the answer). The teachers were offered a salary increase and yet they still chose to strike! Why? Because the union wants the increase in salary but they dont want ANY accountability tied to teacher retention. This is only one reason why 79% of 8th graders cannot read at grade level.

This is about the kids. Better not build that Chic-fil-A restaurant as there will not be any kids smart enough to work in fast food......

This is sure to bring out the haters, but this is exactly why we need unions. To let a politician like Emanuel (who knows nothing about education) make wholesale decisions about the schools is wrong. Where does a mayor get off adding 90 minutes to the work day and cancelling agreed on contracted raises? You people would (or at least should) scream if someone not your boss came in to your workplace and said you would be working an extra 90 minutes every day with no pay increase AND your job evaluation would be based on factors outside your control. Nobody likes a strike, but the mayor is right, it is avoidable if he would be reasonable.

Westerbust, there are several problems with homeschooling.
1. Its possible children will lack in socialization/interaction skills with their peers due to homeschooling.

2. Many parents are unable to commit to home schooling-examples would include households where there is only 1 parent, or where both parents work.

3. Homeschooling does cost money. Most people take for granted Internet connection, Updated computer, access to programs. In Chicago for example (or other urban school districts) these simple luxeries that we take for granted are not always the norm in an urban household.

4. Children do miss out on a lot of activities such as sports and other club events. There are many districts, in wisconsin that I know of, that allows homeschooled children to participate in these....however...the motivation lies not in the childrens sake but moreso to add the child(ren) to the attendance numbers for state and federal funding.

bill, this wouldn't happen in WI as strikes by public employees are illegal here and WEAC has said they would not strike. So it doesn't show why Act 10 was "needed" in your opinion.

This strike is why Act 10 had to be enacted here in Wisconsin. The unions said we didn't need Act 10. The unions said they were willing to be reasonable. In Chicago, the Democrats run everything and have for upwards of 100 years. The Democrats and the unions are allies. Yet Chicago's schools face a $3 Billion deficit while spending more that $13,000 per student. Can they get any help from their union partners? Yeah, if you can call a cold slap in the face helpful.

We see now in Chicago the kind of union co-operation that we'd have here in Wisconsin if not for Act 10. Just as we've seen from or our teacher's union here in Janesville that refuses to help with Janesville's own deficit problem now, too.

This strike says more about the unsuitability of unionism in public employment than a million word essay could ever say. Does Illinois have a leader like Governor Walker? A leader willing to be spat on by unionistas? A leader willing to be called a liar and much, much worse? If so, perhaps they can consider their own Act 10. If not, expect a quick and ignominious capitulation by political cowards who know that the unions butter their bread. That's the Chicago way, after all.

Maybe stop relying on public schools to educate your children. Nearly every single bit of knowledge that humankind has learned is now accessible by that thing you are staring at right now.
We've become a country where we expect public schools to babysit our children and attempt to infuse some kind of knowledge in them. Let them strike, big deal.
Btw, it's not difficult to homeschool your children, and that doesn't mean you have to infuse them with some kind of right wing propaganda literature.
You're kids are smarter that the schools will allow them to be.

Precisly why Walker stripped collective bargining from the hands of public workers. They say that this is for the children, but it's nothing more than personal greed motivating this. Who in today's economy would wince at a 16% pay raise (not even for a full days work/full years work)? Especially for a state that is not only bankrupt, but in debt...The cost to the community is what is an outrage. I'll bet they didnt take into consideration that many taxpaying single parents rely on the school system for both childcare and 1 meal for their child...

I support the union and its right to collectively bargain but the strike is WRONG!
.
It is about the kids. Teachers have every right and the ability to work hard for their kids (students) and THEIR KIDS (family).
.
Questions: Are CPS teachers expected to live in the city? Is 80k a legit number? What are the conditions of the schools? Years back I remember reading about E. St. Louis schools being, well, just crap. Are chicago public schools in bad shape physically? Is that part of the negotiation?
.
Regarding the evaluation. Teachers, I would propose union leadership, and education officials need to sit down and construct a fair evaluation system. The system should have HIGH expectations but should not be based on a test that fails to meet "best practice" expectations.
.
Evaluation should be based on student growth not multiple choice knowledge. A state standardized test is not the way to evaluated teachers. Heck, it isn't the way we should evaluate kids.
.
Lastly, I hope this ends quickly. My career focuses on kids and they NEED school. Teachers are SO very important. I hope everyone figures things out quickly and remembers that. Teachers have a RIGHT to protect their families but the kids have the RIGHT to an education.
.
Thoughts and Prayers.

Looks like its time for some new teachers in Chicago.... Out with the bad -- in with the ones that actually want to suppor the kids.

Walker's fault

For $80k a year, 7 hour work days, and 2 1/2 months off for summer...I might just be inclined to do more than a day.

"a" not "and"

MidnightRide, BooRadley, and Mteg:
Walk and day in their shoes AND don't be so quick to judge others.

When your off for several months, 7 hours can be tiresome...

It's all about the kids don't cha know.

Apparently in Chicago a 7 hour day and 16% raise isn't good enough.
..Thank you again Governor Walker because it is about the kids.