Tuesday, September 04, 2018

Seattle Teachers Negotiate a 10.5%, One Year Pay Raise.
























Threatening to strike on the first day of school, the City of Seattle caved into the union's demand and authorized a 10.5% annual raise for the 2016-19 school year.  Moreover, the teachers also obtained an additional five days of parental leave.  Finally, the contract offers health benefits for substitute teachers. By contrast UFT negotiated a similar raise for seven years!

Maybe our union leadership should take a page out of the Seattle teachers union playbook and get a better contract for their members.  In addition, there were no "givebacks". You can read the newspaper article Here.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Teachers here are too scared to strike. We will be lucky to get that much of a raise over 8 years at this point.

Anonymous said...

The UFT should be embarrassed. Enough said.

Shady said...

Our contract will be 2%, 2.25% and 3% but the 3% is not 3rd year but 3 1/2 year point. That is what was given to D37 and that's what we would have to negotiate with.

On the other hand I was in India over the summer and saw one guy get very angry with his supervisor and management. He did not complain, write letters, anonymous 311 calls and investigations. He did not anything crazy like that. He simply remained calm and professional. The only thing he did was to light himself on fire from head to toe. You talk about making a statement.

Now, I am not sure that would work in the States. We have too many fire extinguishers within reach and I do not think suicide or violence is ever a solution unless you are a lion or a bear and someone is trying to hunt you. In those situations I think bears and lions should resort to violence and attack and kill the hunters. WTF is the hunter thinking?

By the way we are currently 10 minutes away from showtime. The students are now entering the building to get their programs. Principal is wearing her 6 inch heels and miniskirt. Reason I know they are 6 inch heels - she came over and said "my 7 inch heels would be too much so I went with 6 inch heels." Must admit she is looking good today. Might end up smacking her ass before she smacks mine.



Anonymous said...

Have teachers who retired between 2014-2018 lost out on anything in the current contract ? Should they have stayed until the current contract ended?

Chaz said...

Yes. If they were terminated, died, or left for another job they do not get the October lump sum payments.

Further, their pension is less due to not receiving the final raises.

Shady said...

@ 2:44 Chaz...

When the contract was signed the city agreed that if a teacher is terminated and left by taking another job then they forfeit their lump sum backpay payments. The agreement was if a teacher left the DOE. Left meaning voluntarily left and not died. NOW, the city wants to say if a teacher or administrator died then they have left therefore they forfeit the lump sum.

The administrators' union is going to court or arbitration on this. I haven't heard what UFT is doing. What kind of city would not give the deceased family members the lump sum they have earned and deserve?

anonymous said...

If you retire as of July 1, 2018 you do get all your lump sum payments each October I was told by pension consultant
My question is will they be taking out TDA out of those lump sum payments ??