(11/28/05) The Colchester labor impasse was not about a shared mission and service for the greater good of students and community. It was about manipulating and coercion to gain the ends of a powerful labor union. South Burlington is the next battleground.

Sam Lambert, the former NEA Executive Secretary, said “the NEA will become a political power second to no other special interest group….the NEA will organize this profession from top to bottom into logical operational units that can move swiftly and effectively with power unmatched by any other organized group in the nation.”

There’s ample evidence that they’ve achieved their goal. The teachers’ union nominated Bill Clinton and substantially funded his campaigns. They are very influential in Vermont, controlling the education agenda, draining more tax dollars to increase salaries and dues for the union, pushing for smaller class sizes to expand their membership and expanding public schools by two years.

In “A Challenge to Change” report commissioned by Lt. Governor Barbara Snelling, former Superintendent and Education Commissioner Marc Hull said “the present system is out of balance, with teachers’ union having more power.” The commission recommended revisions to current collective bargaining statutes to bring some balance into the negotiation process. It advocated no salary increases outside of collective bargaining, allowed the imposition of finality for multi-year contracts, and afforded school boards the ability to provide services using outside contractors.

Also included in their findings was a key recommendation that labor contacts be negotiated regionally. “Local school boards are no match for the powerful Vermont teachers union.”

All of these recommendations have merit but didn’t advance in Vermont because they were opposed by the NEA powerful lobby. Their sphere of influence reaches out into every community and legislative district in our state. They affect our school boards, school administrators, parents and legislators in the education public policy formation and control.

But let’s look at ways to empower school boards and administrators with the tools to make needed changes.
 

1. Open negotiations to the public if mediation and fact finding is deadlocked. This will ensure the process remains student-focused and enable the public to review both the taxpayers’ and unions’ proposals if collective bargaining reaches an impasse. After all, taxpayer’s are paying the bill and should vote on the final outcome.

2. Allow parents to assist in school 20 hours a week to help tutor or help students after school. Many parents would welcome more involvement after school. Tutoring and working with students on homework and/or special projects would reinforce instruction and community commitment to students.

3. Require courts to uphold school board decisions not to renew a contract, or to suspend or dismiss a teacher unless a teacher can establish that action of the board was erroneous. This would affirm that authority rests with the school board and not the courts. The school board alone should establish policies on teaching standards and judge whether they are met.

4. Prevent members of the NEA from serving on any school board in Vermont. The Hatch Act prevents federal employees from engaging in partisan political activity in exchange for job security and promotions. The same should apply to unionized teachers since their allegiance could be construed to advance the NEA’s agenda rather than doing what’s best for children and/or taxpayers.

5. Provide merit pay for teachers. The best and the brightest teachers take home the same pay as those who just show up. There should be a performance incentive to teachers who make a real difference in the classroom.

It’s important that taxpayers recognize that schools are for students and don’t belong to the NEA. The reforms cited above will control spending, enable taxpayers to run our schools and improve education outcomes. We have to decide whether to ride the waves with the status quo or make new waves with needed reform.

Frank Mazur
South Burlington

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Frank Mazur is a small business owner and was a member of the Vermont House from 1995-2004. He’s also chair of the advisory board to FreedomWorks.com