FOLLOWUP: Seattle Education Association members vote to strike if no deal

(Added, reader-contributed video: Ben Evans recorded Thursday night’s vote at Benaroya)

8:19 PM: The Seattle Education Association – which represents educators in Seattle Public Schools – says its members have voted to strike if an agreement isn’t reached. It was by a unanimous voice vote, according to our partners at The Seattle Times. The two sides are scheduled to resume talks tomorrow, with a mediator. More to come.

ADDED 8:37 PM: Here’s the official news release just e-mailed by SEA:

By an unprecedented thunderous unanimous vote, Seattle educators have voted to strike beginning the first day of school, Sept. 9, if the Seattle School Board fails to negotiate a tentative contract agreement before then.

“The Seattle School Board has rejected most of our proposals around competitive pay, reasonable testing, guaranteed recess, student equity and workloads,” said Phyllis Campano, a special education teacher who serves as Seattle Education Association vice president and bargaining chair. “Through their inaction, their lack of serious proposals and their refusal to publicly explain their positions, Seattle School Board members have shown they neither respect nor value us as professional educators.”

SEA President Jonathan Knapp said negotiators from the SEA and the Seattle School District are meeting with state mediators Friday morning.

“Seattle teachers and support staff are unified and resolute in working for a fair contract,” he said. “And we’re willing to do what it takes to get one. The Seattle School Board must get down to work and move on these crucial issue so our students can start school on time.”

Although negotiations began in May, and educators set an Aug. 24 deadline for a contract settlement, major unresolved issues haven’t changed:

*Professional pay: We need to attract and keep caring, qualified educators in Seattle, which is one of the most expensive cities in the United States. We’ve gone six years with no state COLA and five years with no state increase in funding for educator health care.

*Guaranteed student recess: Recess time varies wildly across the district, and we believe all students benefit from a guaranteed amount of time for play and exercise.

*Fair teacher and staff evaluations: Educators should be evaluated fairly and consistently, and the focus should be on providing the support all educators need to be successful.

*Reasonable testing: Too much standardized testing is stealing time away from classroom learning.

*ESA workload relief: Educational staff associates provide students with crucial services and support, but their current workloads mean many students aren’t getting the help they need.

*Office professional workload relief: Office professionals do crucial work and play many roles – and they should be compensated for the extra work they do.

*Student equity around discipline and the opportunity gap: We need to focus on equity issues across Seattle, not just in six schools.

*The administration’s proposal to make teachers work more for free: It is unrealistic to expect teachers to work more hours without additional pay, and the district administration has been unable to explain how their proposal would help students.

SEA represents about 5,000 teachers, instructional assistants, paraprofessionals, nurses, counselors, substitute teachers and office professionals who educate 52,000 students in the Seattle School District.

10:06 PM: And the district has sent a news release as well:

Seattle Education Association (SEA) members have voted to authorize a strike tonight, potentially delaying the start of school. SEA members took the action after a collective bargaining agreement could not be reached between the union and the Seattle Public Schools (SPS).

SEA represents the district’s educators, substitutes, paraprofessionals, instructional assistants and office professionals. The current contract with SEA expired Tuesday. A vote to authorize a strike is not declaring a strike. The union is not allowed to declare a strike until 72 hours after the vote to authorize. Securing an agreeable contract for union members is highly important to both SPS and SEA.

SPS and SEA have a shared goal of providing a quality education for our 53,000 students. The district is optimistic an agreement can be reached, and those students can start their school year. A mediator will meet with both sides Friday to assist in the negotiation process and the district is hopeful that an agreement can be made to start school as scheduled, on September 9.

“Our goal is a contract which honors, respects and pays oureducators and provides more instructional time for all students, including those children who desperately need more time with outstanding teachers in order to succeed,” said Superintendent Larry Nyland. Seattle remains behind other districts statewide in the amount of daily instructional time for students, approximately six hours and ten minutes.

SPS has proposed a 13% salary increase over three years for SEA members, including a state Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA). Since 2007, the district has increased salaries for teachers by 23%, exceeding the Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) of 19% over the same time period.

The start of school could potentially be delayed. The district is working with the City of Seattle on child care options, including Seattle Parks and Recreation and the possibility of some SPS daycares remaining open. Athletics events will operate as scheduled, unless otherwise announced.

61 Replies to "FOLLOWUP: Seattle Education Association members vote to strike if no deal"

  • WorriedMama September 3, 2015 (8:34 pm)

    It’s difficult to get a clear sense of where communication between the two sides broke down. Some of the proposals around the extended instruction time seem to have been late breaking. I’m worried that I don’t have enough vacation time left to take care of my kids if the school year start is delayed. I’ve already used up my balance trying to cover the later than usual Sept. 9th start date that may not even happen.

  • AmandaKH September 3, 2015 (9:03 pm)

    I stand with our teachers! Give them everything they want, every time.

  • B September 3, 2015 (9:09 pm)

    I think we should restructure our school administrator contracts to more closely follow what happens in many parliamentary governments. If the administration is unable to achieve a contract with educators by a deadline (and before the school year), the administration falls and a new one must be voted in.

  • kap September 3, 2015 (9:22 pm)

    SPS – get it together and give these teachers what they have deserved for a long time. Be an example. Do the right thing.

  • JoB September 3, 2015 (9:25 pm)

    support your local teachers
    they hold our furture in their hands

  • Echo September 3, 2015 (9:30 pm)

    I’m with you @WorriedMama. Vacation days are dwindling, no contingency plan and my little one is already asking everyday if it’s time for school. Hope an agreement is reached soon.

  • Seattle Teacher September 3, 2015 (9:46 pm)

    I was at the meeting tonight when we voted to strike. I stood with thousands of people who want the best possible education for your children, Seattle. In my 25 years in the classroom I have never been on strike nor have I ever felt as strongly as I do now. The district didn’t even bring proposals to us until one week prior to the deadline, and often we showed up to bargain when they either weren’t there or weren’t prepared. I am sorry for the negative impact on families – believe me that none of us take this lightly or without much thought. It is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

    • WSB September 3, 2015 (10:05 pm)

      The district has since issued a news release, which I’m adding to the story right now, in its entirety as we did with the SEA news release – TR

  • showofsupport September 3, 2015 (9:48 pm)

    as a 22yr veteran of this district and someone whose passion is teaching, i’m encouraged by the support the adults and kids in our community are showing for us. thank you!
    this feels like the right choice given what the district has been counter-“offering” up til now.

  • Be mama September 3, 2015 (10:24 pm)

    Hey teachers- SPS has a lot of access to us parents via direct email. Sorry you don’t. Make sure your message to the public is very clear.

    Worried mama- check out the community centers- they should be ready to help out with this.

  • HP Gal September 3, 2015 (10:31 pm)

    So here’s the thing. We are NOT asking for a raise from the district in our base pay. The raise that SEA is asking for is in our extra day (TRI) pay.

  • Wb September 3, 2015 (10:35 pm)

    @seattleteacher stay strong and you don’t have to be sorry for striking.

  • Educator September 3, 2015 (11:54 pm)

    @HPGal, that is NOT correct. We are indeed proposing a raise on our base pay, to be paid as TRI pay. It was explicitly stated tonight at the meeting.

    There has been so much confusion around this. Tonight it was clear that others thought the raise was on total pay (base+TRI). The union didn’t do a good job of communicating this.

  • Life is hard September 4, 2015 (12:20 am)

    I feel like teachers should get paid more and I actually do not care if they have to strike. What I want people to know is, like a lot of other workers, I don’t get a raise every year. My work load can increase on a whim daily. My choice is to look for another job or suck it up.

  • Timing September 4, 2015 (3:29 am)

    the bi annual teachers strike, put it on your calendars parents!

    • WSB September 4, 2015 (7:06 am)

      “Timing,” as noted in other threads, this would be – IF it happens – Seattle teachers’ first strike over a contract in 30 years.

  • Mark47n September 4, 2015 (5:14 am)

    My wife is a teacher. I am constantly reminded that she has to put up with things at her job, as a teacher, that I would never tolerate in my job. Working while uncompensated. Most teachers bring work home with them, they work on weekends and on school breaks.
    Abusive parents. There are, apparently, many parents that believe that school is a daycare and that if little Johnny is failing his classes it must be the teachers fault, not that Johnny hasn’t been to class…ever. The abuse ladled out is unconcionable and has left me, a construction and mill worker, gobsmacked.

    To be honest, supporting teachers IS supporting your children.

  • M September 4, 2015 (5:20 am)

    Do teachers still get paid during the strike?

  • Smitty September 4, 2015 (7:08 am)

    Life I am with you.

    Quoting “starting” salaries rather than median or average has always been a red flag to me.

    Another flag is the constant reminder that even though they work a 10-month work year they “take work home with them” as if briefcases and cell phones were developed just for teachers.

    Why teachers choose a profession that everyone knows is underpaid and then complain about the salary boggles my mind.

  • DP September 4, 2015 (7:10 am)

    @Life is Hard – teacher pay is just one of the many grievances teachers have with SPS. Apparently educating yourself on this complex issue is hard, too.

  • joel September 4, 2015 (7:22 am)

    the below is from the SEA post………………………………………SPS has proposed a 13% salary increase over three years for SEA members, including a state Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA). Since 2007, the district has increased salaries for teachers by 23%, exceeding the Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) of 19% over the same time period……………………………..someone familiar with the situation….is the above information correct? if NOT then what increases/decreases etc are accurate?

  • Wsteacher September 4, 2015 (7:52 am)

    Please read the entirety of the press releases. Pay is just one issue that we have been bargaining. And that pay increase is for ALL SEA members, this includes paraprofessionals who can sometimes work full time and still qualify for food stamps (and QUALITY parapros are crucial to student success, just as quality teachers). There are many incredibly important issues for bargaining: special Ed caseloads, workloads of our overworked school secretaries, caseloads of our ot/pt/slp specialists.

  • Ronnie September 4, 2015 (7:55 am)

    Wa wa…
    I am so tired of hearing teachers complain about their jobs and the hard conditions they put up with…
    Nobody forced them to put their efforts to that profession and it is assumed at some point early on in their teacher education they must have learned about the pay and work conditions…
    Really there are few jobs that give a month or two off in the summer, provide sabbatical, offer stimulating work with the new generation and have senior tenure…

  • JoB September 4, 2015 (8:02 am)

    smitty
    teachers choose the profession of teaching because they care about educating kids…
    i have never understood why we choose to pay them as though they don’t provide a valuable service to our community

  • flimflam September 4, 2015 (8:06 am)

    aren’t teacher strikes illegal?

  • DP September 4, 2015 (8:11 am)

    @WorriedMama – communication broke down, in part, when SPS wouldn’t show up to some of the negotiation meetings.

  • Dale September 4, 2015 (8:36 am)

    The Department of Labor notes a 2.2% increase in wages (non-farm) in the last 12 months this morning. 16.6% increase in Cost of Living 2007-2014 per online sites. Thus, the 19% figure quoted by District appears accurate. That is not to say that teachers are underpaid or overpaid. Just that it appears that their past contracts have kept up with the Cost of Living.

  • Smitty September 4, 2015 (8:37 am)

    JoB,

    The point was – everyone KNOWS teachers are underpaid(in part, due to a 10-month schedule), so why choose that profession and then complain about the pay?

    This isn’t new, and they can’t plead ignorance.

    If there is a teacher shortage then we have a problem. I don;t think that is the case.

  • Laura September 4, 2015 (8:49 am)

    Ronnie, Smitty… What happened to you?!? maybe your mother’s were teachers and you resented them caring for other children? Seriously… What is wrong with you? The union is comprised of office workers, nurses, occupational therapists, psychologists, instructional assistants, substitutes, counselors, and teachers (I’m probably missing some folks), who ALL agree that the district is FAILING in this contract negotiation to care for our students, and our staff. They’re not negotiating in good faith. Not caring about equitable practice. Not caring about how the evaluation system is broken. Not caring about fair pay. Not caring about student needs. My question is what got up your butts? Teachers are amazing! They hardly complain. They work their asses off. Show some respect!

  • T Rex September 4, 2015 (8:57 am)

    Interesting that we want to raise the minimum wage to $15.00 an hour for frying up burgers, making pizza etc…

    But OMG pay out teachers what they deserve? Say it isn’t so!

    STAND YOUR GROUND TEACHERS!

  • Alex September 4, 2015 (9:03 am)

    i am an SPS parent, and I really want my son to go back to school, but we will figure it out. We support the teachers.

    SPS: if there is a strike, public opinion will be against you. Bargain seriously and treat the teachers with respect. The public is with them!

  • Smitty September 4, 2015 (9:05 am)

    Who’s “resenting teachers”?

    I absolutely respect them for their CHOICE to go into this profession. CHOICE.

    1) What other profession continually quotes “starting pay” when making a case for salary increases for all? Quote median, or average and don’t forget to include pensions that very few professions are fortunate enough to have.

    2) What other profession acts as if a 3% COLA shouldn’t count in the math? Guess what? Very few of us get a COLA let alone a 3% raise every year – at minimum.

    3) What other profession tries to act like 2 months off in the summer is off-set by long hours at home? Who among us doesn’t take work home – ALL YEAR?

    4) What profession refuses to allow for actual competence to be the primary factor in compensation rather than tenure?

  • Smitty September 4, 2015 (9:11 am)

    2080 X (10/12) X $15 = $26,000 < $70,000

    http://www.kirotv.com/news/news/seattle-teacher-salaries-compared-other-districts/nZhrN/

  • joel September 4, 2015 (9:39 am)

    in any job the entire pay package needs to be considered…..not just pay but benefits, time off, pension plan etc……looking at the website it appears a teacher who started working after 1977 with 20 years experience can get a pension beginning at age 55 (with survivor benefits)….that alone is a huge benefit and should be considered with the entire wage compensation package……pensions are not common these days and being able get one at 55 is an excellent benefit…most Americans will be working into their 70’s…….with any stressful job time off is important. to know one has a week off at Christmas, a week off at spring break, all major holiday and several other holidays most don’t get plus the majority of the summer off…in addition to regular vacation time……those are perks, if offered in any job, should be considered in the entire compensation package…..while realizing teachers work very hard, just like everyone should do in their jobs, it is important to note the benefits as well.

  • DW September 4, 2015 (9:39 am)

    I don’t think the teachers should be cheering about this (as they are in the video). I get that they’re frustrated – but this could cause a lot of hardship for parents and acting like this is something to be celebrated is really a turn off.

  • Concerned Students September 4, 2015 (9:40 am)

    Hello. We are four students from Chief Sealth High School, and for our whole lives we’ve been putting up with the district’s neglect of our education.
    Every single year since the third grade, a good chunk of our time at school has been spent preparing for the constant barrage of state tests. The multiple sessions of quite frankly unnecessary exams have been stripping us of an actual education.
    Two of us have worked with special education students, and have witnessed the apathy of the district firsthand. The underfunding and neglect of students with special needs is absolutely ridiculous. The staff care, but the district clearly did not and does not. Education is a fundemental right.
    We have never known our school couselors. They have always been drowned with dealing with the work of the entire student body, and never have time to form the student-staff bond that we need to be able to effectively plan our future. Now that we are in high school, this has never been more important.
    As we have worked our way through the school system, class sizes have constantly expanded. My math class this year had 36 people. With so many students crammed into such a small space, people had to share desks, and our teacher spent more time on behavioral management than teaching algebra.
    The fact that our own district is refusing to put students and staff before money is unacceptable.
    47th in the nation. That’s no way to fund education!

  • Kadoo September 4, 2015 (9:54 am)

    Summers off?!! You clearly don’t know any teachers.

  • Andy September 4, 2015 (10:19 am)

    Unions are good. Strikes are healthy- many of the awesome things we have in this country we fought for tooth and nail. Support SEA workers! You pay for what you get.

  • urn42 September 4, 2015 (11:25 am)

    @joel To be clear, teachers get about 5 PTO days a year. There’s no “regular vacation time.” And working with walking germ factories, those PTO days are usually consumed as sick days shortly after first contact in the fall.

  • FrustratedParent September 4, 2015 (11:26 am)

    Frankly, As much as I would like to stand with the teachers on this one, I don’t. This is 100% about wage and what they are asking for is unreasonable. If this is about attracting talented people there also needs to be a flexible alternative for the administration for getting bad teachers out.

    Rather than seeing a 25% increase in the pay of teachers I’d rather see the pay stay the same and a 25% drop in classroom size.

  • Helen September 4, 2015 (11:36 am)

    I am a teacher for Seattle Public Schools. The decision to vote yes for a strike did not come without much deliberation and consideration for or students and families. Choosing the possibility of a strike (and hoping to reach an agreement before the first day of school) did not come easily. I have been preparing for the first weeks of school since the last week of July (meetings, Jumpstart and many unpaid hours of prep for kindergarten students to attend a week of school before they school year starts, along with curriculum night (another unpaid day) have been filling up my summer, all in the name of getting ready for a great first year of school for my kiddos.) We will be expected to walk the picket lines – while not getting paid – all in the name of quality education. This does not come easy for any of us. I am not sharing this because I want anyone’s pity, but rather to remind you that this is the system already set in place during the negotiation process when the district does not show competence in the ‘bargaining with good faith” spirit.

    It may be a long and crazy ride. We all hope to be in the classroom on Wednesday and getting down to the business of educating our children. Thank you Seattle for your overwhelming support!

  • Mike September 4, 2015 (12:03 pm)

    “all in the name of quality education”
    .
    So far what I see and what others seem to see are article after article regarding salary, nothing which has to do with quality education. There are volunteers that provide quality education. As far as I and many other see, this is purely about salary. Don’t pawn off our kids as a tool to justify salary increases. If pay is the issue, stick to the topic, don’t use my child as your crutch.
    .
    I do believe many teachers should be paid more. I also believe many teachers should be fired. Being state employees, it’s near impossible to fire the bad ones.

  • birdie September 4, 2015 (12:06 pm)

    @DW, It was a celebration of solidarity, not of having to strike. Not one in that room wanted to get to this point. After the deafening silence after the nay vote, we realized that we were all united in doing what’s needed to get a fair contract. A few thousand people in a room (especially educators, who can be an argumentative bunch) in unanimous agreement is rare, and it was a moving moment.

    This places hardship on the families we serve as well as our own families. I know it’s a big ask to have the community trust that we have not just our own best interests in mind, that we have been forthright, honest and well-intentioned during negotiations and that the district’s lack of engagement, respect, and organization is squarely to blame for this crisis. But I, and many others, would have said “nay” if that weren’t the case.

  • miws September 4, 2015 (12:15 pm)

    Concerned Students, Helen, and others “on the front line”, thank you for your sensible perspectives…

    .

    Mike

  • joel September 4, 2015 (1:03 pm)

    if a strike and lost wages….don’t most contracts end up with a signing bonus that basically pays the wages that were lost during the strike? it’s like a government shut down….no one gets paid during the shut down but then everyone gets paid once it’s over.

  • Workin' for a livin' September 4, 2015 (3:36 pm)

    Wow! I would love to be working in a job where I knew I would be getting a guaranteed 13% raise over the next three years and a pension after 20 years. If you add in pretty much guaranteed employment regardless of whether my performance is stellar or mediocre, good health insurance coverage and several weeks off in the summer, I think I might accept lower pay than working in the Amazon sweatshop, where I could be fired any time and am expected to answer emails promptly whether it is day or night.

  • Mr. Teacher September 4, 2015 (6:40 pm)

    Sigh. What a mess. Many of the negative comments are from people who truly missed the point, or believed in the media. Of course they are only going to talk about pay, that’s what grabs attention! I made it a point to ask every single one of the teachers in my building if they would strike without the pay issue, and it was a unanimous yes. Do a little research. the other issues are about making real change in education, not just in someone’s pocketbook. Come join me on the picket line and we can chat all day about the inequity in modern education. Our system is broken, and we aim to fix it.

  • Mike September 4, 2015 (8:10 pm)

    Mr. Teacher, please provide concrete information and links to why, please.

  • Librarian September 4, 2015 (8:39 pm)

    I worked in Seattle schools for 26 years. In all that time, when voting on a contract, there was NEVER a unanimous vote! I still have many friends working in schools, and not one has mentioned better pay as the reason they are striking.

  • Mr. Teacher September 4, 2015 (9:21 pm)

    Order of importance is on you Mike. http://www.seattlewea.org

    1. Hard caseload caps for Education Staff Associate (ESAs, School psychologists, school counselors, etc.)

    The district has proposed hiring 7 new ESAs for the entire district… A drop in the bucket.

    After the last negotiations SPS was supposed to work with SEA to develop firm caps for ESA’s caseloads. That never happened. Students of color are disproportionately impacted when our support staff cannot fully address their needs.

    2. Fully funded and supported Race and Equity teams at each building to begin to deal with the problems of disproportionate discipline actions and institutionalized racism.

    The district has proposed piloting the teams in only six schools…phased in over three years. A plan that is already in place. This is not a program, but a structure for every school to begin to systematically think about how race and equity can be addressed in a real way that works for each site. There is no need to pilot committee work

    3. Hire more office professionals (SAEOPS, the Seattle Association of Educational Office Professionals who are the classified/clerical employees of Seattle Public Schools) so that their workload is manageable.

    Another quote from Geoff Miller here, “If we were to pay the SAEOPS all the overtime they work, it would bankrupt the district.”

    Our school secretaries have been saddled with more work as admin struggle to manage the labyrinth of over-testing and evaluations. The only real answer is to their workload issue is to hire more staff to accommodate the increased demand.

    4. Scrap the Student Growth Rating! Uncouple test scores from teacher evaluations and develop a fair and equitable evaluation procedure that has integrated reliability (works the same no matter who is evaluating you).

    Coupling test scores and evaluations is based on junk science in the first place and is completely inequitable given not all teachers teach tested subjects.

    This kind of “accountability” only serves to drive the best teachers away from schools facing social and economic disadvantages.

    5. Mandatory 45 minutes per day of recess for children.
    Exhaustive studies have shown that more academic instruction commonly referred to as “seat time” does not equal better test results, let alone a better education.
    Social and emotional development is of extreme importance in childhood development. The unstructured environment of recess is crucial to this process.

    6. An increase in compensation that reflects the fact that there has not been a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) in 6 years and that the district has received quite a bit of new discretionary funds from the state.

    The Seattle School District administration offered a 2% raise the first year, 3.2% the second year, and a 3% raise the third year. In contrast, SEA has proposed increases of 7 percent a year for three years, which is much more in line with what is needed to continue attracting and keeping educators in Seattle. There are several other school districts around Washington State where the teachers make more money, yet Seattle has by far the highest cost of living.

    7. No lengthening of the school day. Especially if the district is not willing to pay for it.

    As mentioned earlier, there is no evidence that more instruction time alone will produce results. The district is once again telling students and teachers to do more with less.

    The money is there. The district has received an extra $32-40 million from the state and levy funding. That is to say nothing of the reserves, which are more than double their legal requirement. We say that money ought to be spent to begin to give our children the schools they deserve.

  • kim September 4, 2015 (9:39 pm)

    @workin’ for a livin’: You’d love to be working the job of a teacher? Then why the hell aren’t you?That generous salary, vacation time, benefits, a pension, and the need to perform only mediocre work await you, as there are vacancies all over the NW. Got a BA? It’s a good place to start. A credential program coupled with an MA…hey, go for it. Then nab that job and show the world…wait, wait, wait. Mediocre, you said? That’s acceptable? Not at my school! Aim for stellar, Buddy, ’cause that’s what the goal is, and that means reaching every one of those 25, 28, 32+ amazing children who await your intellect, passion, love, motivation and experience. Mediocre? Eh, don’t even think…

  • MOVE! Seattle PLEASE! September 4, 2015 (9:46 pm)

    And now the WA State court has taken away what the voters approved – Charter Schools. Too bad, fingers crossed an appeal reverses today’s ruling so parents can have a choice for their children.

  • jetcitydude September 4, 2015 (10:34 pm)

    For the kids? yeah right pfftt..

  • DP September 5, 2015 (8:58 am)

    Thank you, Mr. Teacher!

  • Parent of an SPS Student September 5, 2015 (9:18 pm)

    i am in….are you?

  • RichardSaunders September 5, 2015 (10:20 pm)

    It should be unlawful for public sector employees to strike.

  • Lynn September 5, 2015 (10:59 pm)

    @MOVE!,

    Which court are you hoping will hear an appeal of a Supreme Court decision?

  • Mike September 6, 2015 (7:09 am)

    Mr. Teacher, thank you for the list. That’s the first time I’ve actually seen anything Online that makes it direct and to the point. THAT is what the union needs to push into the news, yet failed to do for teachers. Union representation should do a better job with PR, honestly they suck at it. It also does not help that most every teacher interviewed is heard talking about salary rather than the rest of the talking points.
    .
    Think of it like a job interview. If you walk in and only talk about how much you want to get paid, they’ll show you the door.

  • Alan September 6, 2015 (11:07 am)

    @Workin’ for a livin’, you do not know what you are talking about. As a former teacher, the son of teachers, the husband of a teacher and the father of a teacher, I can assure you that “vacations” are generally spent going back to school and/or trying to make ends meet. If you looked at actual hours worked, rather than the contracted hours, many teachers are making minimum wage or less.

    I left teaching more than 30 years ago. I quickly found that I could work at what most would consider a lowly job, making more money, being treated with more respect and having none of the responsibility.

    I have been waiting for a teacher shortage for years. That there are still people willing to work with your spoiled children, dealing with the entitled (or completely absent) parents, while being blamed for the downfall of society, just shows you that there are better people in this world than me. I suggest that you start treating them better before they realize that “working in the Amazon sweatshop” is a joy compared to their current conditions.

Sorry, comment time is over.