Teachers Scab On Themselves in Pennsylvania

[Modern School]

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett (R) slashed $900 million in state education funds last year, according to Think Progress. As a result, the Chester Upland School District in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, which gets nearly 70% of its funding from the state, expects a $19 million shortfall. The school district has told its teachers that by Wednesday it will not be able to pay their salaries. So the teachers, with the support of their union, have decided to work for free.

The school board and the unions both asked Corbett to provide financial aid for the district, but he refused. Pennsylvania’s Education Secretary Ron Tomalis said the district was being punished for failing to properly manage its finances. However, even if the district hadn’t mismanaged its finances, no worker should be expected to nor should they volunteer to work for free. By doing so, not only have they become slave laborers, they have weakened their bargaining positions when revenue becomes available to start paying them again.

From the bosses’ perspective, if the workers are such true believes that they’d work for free, then they’d certainly work for less and do more if asked—something that was happening even before the district ran out of money. Last fall, Chester Upland laid-off 40% of its professional staff and about half of its unionized support staff, leaving class sizes of over 40 students. They also withheld pay hikes worth approximately $800,000 from its teachers, in violation of its contract with them.

Of course it is terrible that the district is out of money and that the children will suffer. However, it is not the teachers’ fault, nor their responsibility. Working for free doesn’t fix the problem, either. Kids will still be in overcrowded classrooms, which is both unsafe and pedagogically unsound. The schools will still be unable to afford supplies. And the teachers will gradually stop coming to work when their own bills start to pile up and other means of earning a living become available.

A scab is someone who undermines workers’ struggle to improve their pay and working conditions by replacing them on the job during a strike or by working for lower wages. Teachers who work for free are serving as scabs for their bosses. They are bailing their bosses out and giving them a free ride for their mistakes and corruption. They are helping the bosses to underpay and overwork them.

They are also undermining other workers’ struggles by sending the message that at least some workers are willing to work for free if they think they are providing a public good. Considering the deplorable condition of so many other state budgets, it would not be surprising to hear that other school districts and social service providers can no longer afford to pay salaries. The administrators of these agencies might very well look to Chester Upland for inspiration.

Modern School
http://modeducation.blogspot.com/2012/01/teachers-scab-on-themselves-in.html

[Sherman A1]

1. Precisely

While this action is certainly well intentioned by the teachers, one must remember that no good deed goes unpunished and there is no doubt that these teachers(workers) have just shot themselves in the foot.

[hay rick]

2. Context for Chester Upland story.

Story here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/pennsylvania-school-district-on-verge-of-collapse-and-using-free-labor-to-stay-open/201

From the article:

"It has long been a troubled district, academically and in the way its finances have been managed. It was only in 2010 that the elected school board regained full control to manage its schools after a number of years of state involvement. Efforts to improve its chronically poor academic performance — including once bringing in a for-profit management company, Edison Schools — have failed.

Now about 45 percent of the district’s students go to two public charter schools schools, and 45 percent of the district’s total operating budget goes to two charter schools to pay to educate those children, according to the Inquirer....

One of the charters, the Chester Community Charter School, is the largest charter in the state and is one of 89 schools in Pennsylvania under investigation for irregularities in scores on 2009 state standardized tests, it was reported on “the notebook” blog, which monitors public education.

The charter school was founded by a lawyer and entrepreneur named Vahan Gureghian, who also owns and runs a for-profit management company that has a contract with Chester Community Charter School to operate it. Gureghian, incidentally, is a big contributor to Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett, having given more than $300,000 to his campaign, which made him the largest single donor. Gureghian also served as an education advisor on Corbett’s transition team after his 2010 election victory."

Disagree with characterizing these teachers as scabs.

1. The pejorative term should be reserved for the worst of the worst- those who cross picket lines and those who refuse to pay dues to a union which represents them. The teachers here are dues-paying members of a union who are themselves victims of the financial meltdown of their employer.

2. The fact that the union is supporting the teachers makes me think that they are working with the knowledge that they will not be paid on schedule but expect to be paid later. That would be a reasonable accommodation in an emergency.

3. The teachers are obviously risking not getting paid at all. In their defense, the teachers I have known and respect also view their jobs as a calling. While they want to be loyal to themselves and to their union, they must also feel responsible for the welfare of their students.

[Modern School]

3. Still Scabs, or at least Mr. Blocks

True, they are union members, but their actions still undermine the pay and working conditions for themselves and other workers. They should not be bailing out their bosses' incompetency.