Work-to-contract action shows union has no concern for student welfare
Students in Pennsylvania’s Neshaminy school district can expect a “do it yourself” attitude from their teachers when they return to school in a few weeks.
That’s because the petulant Neshaminy Federation of Teachers recently voted to initiate a work-to-contract job action in response to contentious contract talks with the school board, PhillyBurbs.com reports.
If the teachers follow through on their threat, students will likely have to do without things such as extra help after school and letters of recommendation for college applications.
When the NFT engaged in a similar job action last year, teachers skipped back-to-school nights and graduation ceremonies, the news site reports.
Why would professional educators be willing to leave students in the lurch? It all comes down to money.
Union members are upset that district officials want them to help pay between 10 and 20 percent of their health insurance premiums. The union, whose members currently contribute nothing toward insurance costs, has proposed contributing eight percent of the premium costs for the next three years. Given that health insurance premiums are climbing steadily, the union’s proposal is even more meager than it seems.
The average teacher salary in Neshaminy is nearly $79,000, though salaries have been frozen since the contract disputes began in 2008, the news site reports. The union wants back pay for all the automatic pay raises it missed during the negotiation stalemate, a demand that would almost certainly bust the school district’s budget.
Once again, a teachers union is willing to use students as pawns in contract negotiations. The NFT has no qualms about diminishing their students’ overall education if it keeps members from helping to pay for their health insurance.
This is professional malpractice on the part of the Neshaminy Federation of Teachers. Couple this with NFT’s sister group in Connecticut which recently bragged about sabotaging a parent trigger initiative that would empower parents, and it’s clear to everyone that the teachers unions have become a destructive force in our schools.
The teachers unions should stop pretending that their goal is to improve public education. It’s just not believable anymore.
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