Thomas Gosnell, president of the American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts, said teachers at the Conservatory Lab sought to unionize because they were concerned about a lack of say in educational policy at the school and frequent turnover in the faculty. He said the union hopes to reach similar contract agreements around the state.
“This contract preserves the charter school ethos by reflecting a commitment to students, flexibility and innovation, as well as to the professionalism of teachers," said Head of School Diana Lam. "We see the contract as a win for students and teachers alike.” (Edweek)
Perhaps this is because my family are recession layoff victims, but to me it seems important to ask whether the union contract provides meaningful job security.
ReplyDeleteWhen unionized Green Dot Schools was making its bid for Locke High School in L.A. Unified, Green Dot took over after a majority of the teachers signed on. Then Green Dot fired about 80% of the teachers and replaced them with young beginners. (Green Dot founder Steve Barr gave that figure to parents he recently met with in Washington, D.C., according to a friend who was at the meeting.)
That's a problematic definition of "unionized," it seems.