Media Spin?- Teachers Do YOUR Homework about SB7 Before You Strike
http://www.catalyst-chicago.org/notebook/2012/04/16/20037/cps-ctu-prepare-fact-finding-in-contract-negotiation#comment-35623
You are right and there is absolutely No question a CPS and what they are willing to do. They have engaged in practices that are inhumane and are the catalyst for a complete assault on minority communities. The lack of respect for teachers who teach poor children and parents who are stripped of power on a daily basis is unparallelled.However, I have witnessed that some of these same strategies in terms of Media Spin are used by the CTU as well. The CTU has been reluctant to be honest with the membership about Senate Bill 7 which has completely disarmed the union. This bill as you very well know Xian, is the most devastating thing that has happened to collective bargaining since the inception of the union. This was done under the Lewis administration with the CTU President signing off on this horrible legislation.
At a CORE meeting Karen screamed and ranted about how she "made a mistake". Asking ."Can we move on?" .The problem that we CAN"T move on until we fix the real problem and that is SB7. The CTU is trying to divert attention about this issue by doing a series of publicity stunts. I personally don't believe that the CTU can get 75% of the members to agree to a strike . That's why the threshold was so high. Before SB7 it was 51% of the voting members. Now it's 75% of the total membership.
How in the world did the CTU leadership let this happen ????? However, .even if t h e y can legally do it,what are they allowed to bargain for under the strict mandates of SB7 ?, SB7 basically limits bargaining for anything other than salary and wages . .CPS has already declared a financial deficit . So teachers will go out risk their jobs just to show solidarity to a union that has sold out in Springfield. and given up the power of the union in January 2010. The only recourse now is to ask teachers to risk everything to protect the union while the union has not protected them.
My greatest fear is that uninformed teachers who see the CTU on T.V. almost daily , will actually believe and trust the leadership. (Because of the media spin) I know that the CTU can only survive if the teachers go out on strike because they have lost all their power under SB7..This is a big gamble for teachers who don't understand the legislation. .I hope that if a strike ensues ,it isn't a gift horse to Rahm Emmauel and CPS who want to terminate every veteran teachers at CPS. Rod Estvan says, If CPS is crazy, they can fire everyone and DE-certify the union if all SB7 provisions and mandates are not met. IS CPS "crazy" I think the answer is YES! I hope and pray that individual teachers are not sacrificed for the sake of union solidarity and purged from the system as a result of the strike.
The strike will be a huge boost for the CTU and if teachers are fired the new younger recruits will just pay the union dues that the veterans pay. With organizing charter schools and getting dues from new members, the CTU will be fine.
I worry about the individual teachers and their families. What I have learned is that just because the union wins, it doesn't necessarily mean teachers win. Ask the 1359 tenured teachers fired in July 2010 . The lawsuit was won for the union but teachers did not get put back to work. The union did not even ask for their jobs back but bragged about the WIN!.
Xian, you know my work. I am not going to sell teachers a bill of bad goods to save anyone's hide. OPEN UP YOUR EYES TEACHERS,
GET THE WHOLE TRUTH BEFORE YOU GO OUT ON A LIMB. I pray daily for our teachers. I love the CORE people but this is NOT what I envisioned Core leadership to look like. God help us all!
GOD BLESS!
C.A.U.S.E. – “ A New Kind of Teacher for a New Generation of Students”