Cleveland
Plain Dealer...
Cleveland
teachers must agree to
concessions
Editorial
A dangerous game of chicken
is being
played out in the Cleveland public schools that could hurt both the
city and
its schoolchildren. Schools CEO Eric Gordon wants to keep almost 300
recalled
teachers on the payroll so important school reform efforts can stay on
track.
To do that, he needs modest concessions from the Cleveland Teachers
Union.
So
far, the union hasn’t budged, even
though it previously agreed to a partial step-pay freeze and other
concessions.
Those givebacks expired last June. When they were agreed, neither side
anticipated needing an extra $13.2 million to cover a higher payroll
and
bigger-than-expected state budget cuts.
Last
week, Gordon recommended to
frustrated Board of Education members that they close the budget hole
by
cutting preschool, sports, busing and other critical programs that help
urban
youngsters succeed in school.
“I
don’t think there’s a good cut they
have recommended,” offered David Quolke, the teachers union chief.
At
least they agree on something.
Quolke says he is wary of the district’s budget numbers, but time is
short. The
deadline to settle this matter without ending up on the state’s fiscal
watch or
caution list is Oct. 31.
Quolke
described negotiations as
“ongoing.” Both sides have been tight-lipped in public.
Wage
and step freezes are never
popular. Yet the union should consider that Issue 2, which limits
public-employee unions’ bargaining rights, has won support from
officials in
some cities and school systems who feel hog-tied at the bargaining
table.
Voters will decide Issue 2 on Nov. 8.
The
Cleveland Teachers Union has the
chance to show that, when jobs and academic gains are on the line,
teachers are
more than ready to accept sacrifices.
Read
this and other stories at
Cleveland Plain Dealer
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