Boston Teachers Union e-Bulletin #37 (2009-10),  04/15/10

Greetings!

All. Good Day.  

We apologize up front for the multitude of e-bulletins this week. We try to avoid sending more than one. This week we have sent three. Sorry, but lots of developments...

The BTU membership last night overwhelmingly approved three settlement agreements. All three were negotiated over the last month and needed membership approval before adoption.

Agreement #1, Assignment Rights for Those in Turnaround Schools, can be found here. Here's how the agreement will work:

If you are a teacher orpara assigned currently to the Blackstone, Dever, Trotter, Harbor, Orchard Gardens, the Burke, or the J F Kennedy--all Turnaround Schools--we have received a schedule for your summer Professional Development and the start and end times of your school for 2010-2011. Here it is:

All questions on this ought to be directed first to your school principal. Also, please let Michael , Caren , or Jenna know what the issue is. (Whether or not there will be pay for the additional time demanded above will go through a state-defined negotiating process; see more below.)

Based on this information, you will have to decide whether you wish to apply, by submitting a letter of interest, to remain at the school or not. You will have to let the principal know on a form (yet to be provided) by April 26. You will be notified verbally whether you will be retained at the school or not by April 28. A certified letter confirming a non-retention will be sent out by April 30.

• Those who are not retained can apply for transfer, whose deadline has been extended to May 5.
• Those who are not retained will go into the excess pools to be held June 1 or 2. The union will hold a mock excess pool exercise for all teachers at some point prior to June 1. (A para's excess pool will, too, be announced.)
• Those who go to an excess pool on June 1 or June 2,  where there are fewer vacancies than people, will be invited back to a new creation, called a comeback pool, on July 1, designed to give more choice. No hires of NEW candidates for teaching jobs will be done in any areas where there are insufficient vacancies from June 1 through July 1, so as to create more positions for our displaced personnel.

These rules generally apply to all. For paras, the dates may be slightly indifferent.

The BTU has reserved all rights to challenge any violations of the BTU Contract.

Finally, what this agreement cannot do is define what new conditions

(including the schedule above) the superintendent will try to impose on staff in the Turnaround schools.  Based on the superintendent's desire to change working conditions, unanswered questions include: how much additional PD time will be required, whether one will be paid for ANY additional work, whether class size in SEI classes will be increased, whether you will lose some of your P&D's, your SEIMS time, and so on.  From this point, there begins a process of negotiation under the new state law that will take, likely, months. This process is unavoidable, it is set by state law, and the results of it are, unfortunately, not going to be known to anyone by the letter-of-interest date, April 26. One point about the superintendent's proposed changes: They will not help the delivery of educational services.  Increasing class size, decreasing pay for time worked, and cutting back planning and developing/consulting time--does anyone seriously think the imposition of these changes will help? Or that they will make schools better places to learn and teach?

There will be a meeting here on Monday, 4/26, at 4:00 PM, for all staff (teachers and paraprofessionals)  from all Turnaround Schools, as well as from other Level IV Schools--the Holland, Dearborn, E. Greenwood, Agassiz, and English High School. An update of all of the above will be given.

Those itinerants who are assigned to a combination of Turnaround and non-Turnaround schools have to apply only for the portion of their work week at the Turnaround site. These people do not lose their attachment rights--if they have any--to a non-Turnaround School.

Please call the office or email one of the field representatives if there are any questions.

***

The Union membership also endorsed a 2nd settlement agreement that makes two changes in the paraprofessional assignment process . First of all, paraprofessionals will now be able to voluntarily transfer to up to five positions, in accordance with procedures that teachers enjoy. Second of all, the para excess pools will now  be conducted in the same fashion as teacher pools. While this is not as good as the current process for paras, the trade off to give as many as 800 paras transfer rights is a plus. A workshop for paras exclusively will be offered on the new set up as soon as more details, including time lines, become available.

***

Lastly, the membership endorsed a 3rd settlement agreement that will redesign the opening of school for the 2010-2011 year only .The first day of school for staff will be Tuesday, 9/7, which will be a day given to the BTU and staff for three hours, and the school department and principals for three hours. Day II will be a regular school day for students and so on. The teacher and para school year will drop to 182 days, from 183. The loss of the one day (6 hours) will be made up as follows: BTU staff will get 'credit' for time spent in school doing work when school is open but not in session on any day from August 6 through September 10. In other words, if a staff member comes in to school on August 6 and works an hour and stays after school on September 7,  8, 9 and 10 for :30, he or she gets 'credit' for the three hours owed. The other three hours owed are added to the 18 hours, and staff  can vote to do them in the traditional fashion. We calculate that most, if not all, staff work at least three hours on a voluntary basis anyway, so this is no added burden.

As always, if there are any questions, please call the BTU office.

Sincerely,

Richard Stutman
BTU President

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