Round Lake Teachers
- on 11.12.06
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The teachers in Round Lake are not happy with the money portion of the offer made during negotiations of their new contract.
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The teachers and support staff are strictly adhering to work start and stop times, not volunteering any extra time before or after work and not taking work home. “I don’t think, at this point, that anyone is even suggesting or talking about the potential of a strike,†Kearby said. “We’re hoping we can hammer this out in mediation.†“We started talking about money, which required our negotiating team to go to the board of education as well as the school finance authority,†Ryan said. “That’s been the delay.†Kearby said money is the main issue. “They’re offering us less money than when they were $14 million in debt,†he said. “We’re significantly apart on dollars and salaries.†|
The teachers are working strictly to the rule of the last contract. This is the same tactic used here in Grayslake last year to try and speed up a resolution to their contract negotiations. This tactic is used in an attempt to get the parents upset so they will call the school board.
The negotiations in Round Lake are more interesting given the school is still under the State Finance Authority that took over the school back in 2002.
Mr. Kearby must have forgotten why the State was asked to takeover the schools when he talks about the offer being less than when they were $14 million in debt. If the district approves contracts like those again, they will continue to stay under State control.
Which is more important to Mr. Kearby, keeping the finances in order so the kids get a good education? Or forcing the district to over extend their finances and end up right back with a huge debt load?
Many, if not most of the teachers at Round Lake are hard working, caring professionals who followed their leadership. Before the state took over, school administration spent what they did not have resulting in the district ending financially belly up.
While recent hirings on the administrative end might have been necessary, teaching positions that were cut have not been reinstated and likewise coaching and sponsoring slots.
This has caused the current union leadership to believe that any belt tightening will always be at the teachers’ expense, a view shared by most teachers.
Meanwhile, the current high school leadership has demonstrated prejudices against accomplished teachers and unproductive ones alike, only to publicly acclaim accomplishments that show thrm in a favorable light. For example, attempting to remove a successful teacher from higher math classes because that teacher is tough. The replacement of a coach who improved team member behavior and performance. The resignation of another who felt completely unappreciated. The stories are legion.
This has been generated by those who have taken opportunity to apply elsewhere, without board repurcussion or censure and yet, the criticism as always, seems aimed solely at the teachers.
Loyalty begets loyalty and consideration begets consideration.
The majority of a school’s budget is salaries. They are the most logical place to cut if you truly need to tighten your belt. If the salary increase tracked with CPI instead of above it, these cuts would farther apart.
Now, if good teachers are bing replaced or forced to move on then that is also wrong. It shows a problem with the administration in that they do not wish to actaully educate the kids. I would be happy to publish some of those stories if the teach involved would like to come forward and provide the details.