Teachers Say They Will Stop Doing Extra, Unpaid Work
Decision follows contentious negotiations over Elk Grove Unified School District's budget difficulties.
With tension rising over contract negotiations with the Elk Grove Unified School District, the head of the district's teachers union announced Tuesday that her members will stop putting in any extra hours not required by their contract in January.
That means no unpaid study halls, college recommendation letters or prep time.
Elk Grove Education Association president Maggie Ellis said at Tuesday's school board meeting that the union chose to take job action for the first time since the 1980s after negotiations became hostile.
"I hope we can all make a New Year's resolution to mend a damaged relationship," she told the board.
Dozens of teachers packed into the meeting cheered the announcement.
Teachers have been at odds with district officials over how to close the district's budget gap, with the district wanting to impose a $60 million cap on the amount spent for teachers' health benefits next year.
District spokesperson Elizabeth Graswich told the Elk Grove Citizen teachers were "within their right" to stop doing voluntary work.
As with most labor actions, it's unclear how many of the union's members will observe the so-called "work to rule."
But students and teachers at the board meeting said some teachers already were.
"They arrive at 7:45 and leave at 3:15," Brittnie Johnson, a senior at Monterey Trail High School, told Elk Grove Patch. Johnson said many students in her fast-moving physiology class had trouble with a recent quiz. Normally, the teacher would have allowed them to retake it.
Instead, "he said because he was working to rule, he couldn't allow a retake," said Johnson.
Johnson, whose mother teaches at Monterey Trail, urged the board to reach an agreement with teachers.
"Now we have a problem, because you are messing with my future," she told board members.
Bob
12:45 pm on Friday, December 9, 2011
Fire all these teachers and hire non union
Bob
12:46 pm on Friday, December 9, 2011
Fire all these teachers and go non union
Bwood
7:38 am on Saturday, December 10, 2011
Got it the first time, Bob …..
Sunnyside Up
8:44 am on Saturday, December 10, 2011
EGUSD is the only school district in northern California that has free healthcare benefits for the teachers. They do not pay any premiums for their healthcare right now. The district is asking for them to pay for part of their benefits. Let's be real now! Where can you get free healthcare now and lifetime benefits for the retired?! Also, teachers are suppose to be professionals, but with this last proposed action, they act like hourly employees. Can't name another occupation where a salaried professional can act like an hourly employee and not be fired! An employee is given a salary for the job well-done without time parameters. An hourly employee is paid for the time put into a job. I don't like what the district has done with their district budget, but the current decisions of the teachers union is unrealistic and unfair to our children.
FREETHINKER
5:37 pm on Monday, January 23, 2012
If you are going to state absolutes, make sure you do your research! There are over 60 school districts in N. Cal alone that have "free" health care for teachers. As for Elk Grove teachers, we have paid the increases in premiums for many years. It comes in the form of salary concessions. We have the highest copays in the region. We have never said we won't pay our share. We want to be part of the conversation. We wanted a wellness program that would have reduced health care costs by a significant amount. Why hasn't the district jumped on that one????
Lifetime retiree benefits is a TRUST managed by a labor/management board. Employees AND retirees pay for that health care coverage.
With regards to work to the contract, EGEA and EGUSD agreed to contract language that gives specific work hours and days. Because the pay schedule says salary doesn't mean that I shouldn't work my contract. The term "salary" doesn't transfer that clearly, All it means is a fixed, regular usually monthly payment for work. I'd like to see every 40 hour a week wage earner's pay schedule change to "salary" and see how many of them will work overtime for free. Teachers are held to a standard that no one else is - all because they work with children. We haven't moved very far from the days when teachers were fired for getting married. I have to sacrifice my own family time because of the expectation of others that I'm at their beck and call. No wonder we can't compete with Finland!
Whyn Oldman
12:36 pm on Saturday, December 10, 2011
No. Don't fire the teachers. Fire the Union !!!
JJ Johnson
12:49 pm on Monday, December 12, 2011
So with a sweet schedule of in by 7:45 and out by 3:15, have time for lunch each day, and get most holidays and lengthy holiday breaks and summers off, it makes perfect sense that teachers would not want to do work on their time and provide help to the students who want and need it.
Mark Paxson
6:10 pm on Monday, December 12, 2011
JJ clearly doesn't have a clue what the typical required work day of a teacher is.
JJ Johnson
10:42 am on Tuesday, December 13, 2011
I was being sarcastic. Plenty of teachers have gone above and beyond, especially with kids with special needs. The few who decide that they are not going above the minimum need to rethink what is important to them.
Mark Paxson
3:18 pm on Tuesday, December 13, 2011
JJ ... my apologies then. I wish there was a way to insert sarcasm into emails and comments.
Lisa Delfino
9:17 pm on Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Do I dare attempt to explain? Ok, here goes...
The teachers' issue with the district is not only about health care, none of us are naive enough to think we don't have contribute something to health care premiums, but we think it should be NEGOTIATED not imposed. The teachers in EGUSD have taken significant cuts over the past two years, saving the district millions of dollars. (our co-pay for doctor's visits is $40. The highest in the area) We took these cuts and never let parents or students know how upset we are by them. We took these cuts and continued to work ALL the extra hours teachers work. We did this under the assumption that district leadership would work with us to solve the problems we face.
District leadership is choosing an adversarial route to negotiations. The teachers cost cutting contract expires in June, 2012. We want to work with our district to approach this budget crisis in a practical manner. We hope by "working to contract" and eliminating the volunteer hours for just a month, EGUSD will get that it is better to work with us, rather than against us.
Mark Fetler
6:59 pm on Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Teachers deserve a bit more consideration during these hard times. Larger class sizes, layoffs, furloughs, more kids in poverty, fewer counselors, less time to do more work. As it is, over half quit within their first five years. Why make it tougher?