South Burlington schools will be closed and school activities will be cancelled beginning tomorrow as teachers appear on the verge of going on strike.
The district announced this afternoon that classes, sports, clubs and all extracurricular activities are indefinitely cancelled. Numerous media reports indicate the teachers, frustrated by months of negotiations that have failed to yield a new contract, plan to walk out.
Vermont Public Radio reported today that teachers made a counteroffer over the weekend, but the South Burlington School Board won’t meet to consider it until Thursday.
VPR reported that the board called the union proposal “disrespectful,” accusing the union of creating a crisis and setting an “arbitrary deadline.”
Multiple media outlets have reported that the district’s effort to alter the teachers’ health care plan to save money is at the center of the disagreement. Fox 44 reported last week that the school board offered teachers the option of keeping their current health plan, but only if the teachers receive a lower salary increase than they had requested.
The district has roughly 2,400 students enrolled in its five schools.
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That’s a totally reasonable request by the School Board. The union needs to understand what negotiations really are. It’s not a one way street. It’s about give and take. If you don’t like it, go find a job where you need to pay ALL of your insurance premiums.
Unfortunately the union does consider it a one way street-its way. At a recent school board meeting, a board member was responding to a point made by the union and all the educators present stood up and walked out. Not exactly the best way to teach young people the concepts of respect, civility and negotiation. Sadly though, it’s par for the course here.
The NEA teachers put their political muscle behind making the rest of us purchase health insurance on the Exchange. Why not just put them all into a high deductible Silver plan like they forced the rest of us into? They’re making $75,000 for only 190 days of work a year, so they can pick up some part time work if they need extra cash to make ends meet. Greedy, Greedy, Greedy.
Jesus didn’t kill the dinosaurs so that teachers would have healthcare.
Perhaps it would help if you all dug back a little deeper and actually understood the time line and the process before offering your opinions. Negotiations have been going on perpetually for 2.5 years. This past round began in December. A fact finder’s report was issued months ago (completely neutral), which the school board walked away from, refusing to accept it. The teachers were prepared to accept the fact finder’s report. The school board walked out on negotiations, not the association. It’s the school board that has refused, time and time again, to come to the table prepared to negotiate. As part of the negotiations process, when all else fails, the board has the right to impose a contract, and the teachers have a right to strike. This is how the system is set up. Some people (see above) are biased against the teachers for very personal reasons. Best not to bring those feelings to the table when you don’t understand what is really happening.
I support the school board and wish to thank them for taking a strong stand and protecting tax payers from these extortionist school teachers. They are already the highest paid teachers in Vermont, almost half of them make over $80,000/year. They get annual raises while the tax payers who fund their salaries do not get annual raises. They complain these raises every year aren’t high enough while the taxpayers who fund their raises are lucky to receive a raise once every two or three years. They complain about contributing a fraction of the cost of their health plan when most taxpayers contribute at least half to their own health plans. On and on and on. These teachers are truly awful, I support unions but it is this type of greed that is destroying unions. Union members should not make more than double the average salary of the people who fund their salaries and benefits. Teachers get six months of vacation on top of the high pay and premium benefits, they are currently very well compensated for their hard jobs. I am pleading to the school board members: PLEASE FIRE THEM ALL TODAY and hire subs who will be grateful to have these jobs and will be more engaged and better educators than this current group. South Burlington has had enough, please support our community’s struggling tax payers!
That the school board would not meet Tuesday to consider the offer that may put kids back in school on Wednesday is sad.
In Mark Davis’s reporting on the recent CCTA bus drivers strike he showed consistent ability to report on anti-union management press releases and couldn’t be bothered with research and investigation into the story, including talking to the union. So, here we go again. I support SB teachers holding strong for good health insurance. Everyone should have unfettered access to health care. If the teachers accept bad health insurance, it helps ensure that others workers will have bad insurance as well.
If you don’t like it, get another job. Nobody forced you to become a teacher or work in South Burlington. I’m as liberal as they come, but unions are useless 95% of the time.
Open letter to the So Burlington School Board: When will the union say “We have enough for now”? Never. You, the elected members of the school board, have to say to the teachers “you have enough”.
The taxpayers, the home owners, the families of the students we are trying to educate have unfairly been burdened with 2 years in a row of 10% school tax increases. Many of us have 2 jobs. We are not getting raises. We are not earning more money. We work 6 days a week all year, many of us go without vacations at all. We are all paying more for health care, thanks to lack of competition in the marketplace, which dates back to the Howard Dean era.
It is time for the teachers to bite the bullet. Your decision sets the bar for every community in this state. Enough is enough. 10% per year is totally unsustainable. Teachers- Back Off!
Linus Leavens SBHS Class of 1972, parent, homeowner, taxpayer.
This is all the more reason for a statewide teachers contract. The union plays off one district against the other for the best outcome. Plus the volunteer board is at a disadvantage against professional union negotiators. I’m not against unions, let’s just have a statewide contract.