Blame the Unions!! Demogogues Looking for Scapegoats

We can all agree that our school should be showing better results.

Who is to blame?

We live in a society of blame placing … from sports analogies to election campaigns … we all like to point our finger at someone, or some policy, and place the blame.

In the world of education it has become fashionable to “point our finger” at teacher unions.

Whether it be the just released Fordham Foundation Report, or, the “Kill All the School Boards” article in the Jan/Feb issue of The Atlantic Monthly, unions take a pounding.

Unions reflect the opinions of their members … if not, union leaders would not be reelected. In fact, unions are the very essence of democratic organizations.  A bottom up democracy: teachers elect building representatives, monthly delegate meetings, and officer elections every few years. And, frequently, really hot contested elections, as is presently in progress in Los Angeles.

Vigorous opponents of unions include totalitarian regimes, China, Russia, Nazi Germany, and, oh yes, the far right politicians and think tanks.

Unions prevent bosses from acting like bosses. They force management to abide by negotiated rules, rules that labor and management jointed negotiated and placed into a contract.

What are these “union rules” that prevent schools from “achieving” better results?

Teacher union contracts establish pay scales, holidays, hours of work, class size, relief from lunch duty, discharge rules, health plans, and frequently require consultation, not approval, of policy issues. They basically are a framework.

You can’t fire someone without “just cause,” some assignments are rotated, some assignments must go to the senior “qualified” applicants.

Are these mutually negotiated rules onerous? autocratic? oppressive?

In fact, teacher union contracts frequently allow for school level modifications, with the approval of the staff and principal.

For too many the role model is Mel Brooks, in the move “History of the World, Part 1,” playing Louis XVI, Brooks glances at the viewer and avers, “It’s good to be the King.”

The attitude of the rich and powerful is wonderfully expressed in another episode from the Brooks classic – a must listen!