U2Bama said:
The executive director of Alabama's tlargest teachers union makes over $200,000 annually; this is more than the Governor or the state superintendent of schools make, and teachers in this state's public schools make anywhere from $22,000 to $48,000 annually.
DO not get me started. I am amazed at what the local Union Leadership makes never mind the executive leadership. ANy time I have a a problem for example:
I was the coach of the Regional and State Championship Robotics Team. I applied for a position to coach robotics during the summer for 8-14 year olds. The school system hired an uncertified person to teach it. Never mind uncertified, but they did not like teaching 3rd, 4th and fifth graders. The next year they cut the 3rd-5th graders out of the program. They never gave me an interview.
I went to the Union because I had not been given an interview, I had not been sent a letter thanking me for applying to acknowledge my application. I found out I did not get the job from the brochure that came to school to send home with the kids.
Now, you would think coaching the regional and state championship team would mean something. You would thing that working with the age group would mean something. You would thing the teching certificate and the degrees would mean something. The program got cut down the next year because this person did not want the younger kids in there. The Union would not do anything.
Or, and I love this, in Massachusetts teacher were given "PERMANENT" certificates. Everyone in the state who had been teaching before 1993, had these words on their certificates. In 1993 the state waived its magoc wand and made them NOT PERMANENT. Every teacher now has to pay money to recertify every five years. The new certificates no longer have the words permanent on them and we have to pay good money every five years to the state.
The theory was that teachers are not taking courses to keep themselves current. What a crock, I take courses all of the time because I am trying to move of the pay scale. I do not get paid based on my job performance. If all of the students in my class pass the standardized state testing, nothing happens. If you perform well at your job, get good evaluations, you are very likely to get a raise.
One final example of the uselessness of the Union. My elementary school was ranked #7 out of around 1,200 elementary schools in the state. We redistricted our town and lost a good chunk of our population of students. We gained what could be labeled a more "difficult" population into our building. Every three years the schools are graded based on the state testing. With redistricting, we dropped to #30. The other school moved up inheriting our students. The killer is, they did not move up that much, and we actually DROPPED less than they moved up. The State labeled my school (#30) a FAILING TO PERFORM because we dropped. The other school moved up was labeled a HIGH PERFORMING SCHOOL (Rank#235) Does this make sense? I am still listening to the silence on the airwaives from the union.
The Union is in the business of making $$$. I watch the younger staff get shafted in negotioations. My wife, 10 years into this career really got shafted during this negotiation. My wife, got shafted during her maternity leave for child number two. My wife was directly told she was not welcome at school in the beginning of the school year by the superintendant of schools because she was pregnant and due in the first month of school. The Union would not adress the issue. If it is not about making money for the Union forget it.
My rookie year teaching, the Union Rep came to my building and said DO NOT STUFF THOSE envelopes. We were supposed to stuff envelopes with test results home from state testing. The people in the building felt this was a secretarial job. They did not want us to stuff them. I taught my class how to fold and stuff envelopes themselves. I NEVER did it myself.
Same year my great-grandmother died A HUGE BLIZZARD was coming in the day of the wake and it was a two hour drive in good conditions to get there. I was DENIED a funeral day because she was not an IMMEDIATE relative. The Union would do nothing for me. Can you imagine.
I have NO use for the Union yet......I am waiting.....maybe someday.