West Chicago’s elementary school district is making national news as an example of local (legal) political corruption. It’s time for the unions to be busted (ended) and the children to be freed from the plantation. It’s time for educational freedom.
Imagine if our Founding Fathers were brought back to life and told that in today’s America — when a family moves into a neighborhood — the local school district OWNS their children. Do you think that’s what the Founders had in mind when they signed the Declaration of Independence? Not a chance.
From Public Sector Inc.:
Faced with the prospect of lean financial times, the West Chicago Elementary District 33 school board decided it would be prudent to reduce automatic annual pay increases and lengthen the amount of time it takes for teachers to reach the top of the pay scale.
On Feb. 4, the Elementary Teachers Association of West Chicago responded by calling a strike. There were many issues separating the two sides: teacher evaluations, health care and class sizes among them. But the issue of pay increases was the most contentious issue on the table. The teachers union was up in arms over this proposal – which only shows how out of line their expectations are with reality.
The strike is over now, but we have yet to see the full contract. When it does come out, parents and taxpayers should pay close attention to how teachers are paid. Unfortunately, understanding how teacher pay works is a daunting task, and the process has a language all its own that most outsiders are unaware of.
