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The FINAL Round

We have been at impasse since April 3rd - almost 6 weeks.  In that span of time, hundreds of members have participated in our activities and events, attending rallies, calling School Board members, coming to union meetings, writing letters to the editor, sending postcards and emails to the School Board, wearing red on payday, and addressing the School Board publicly at its meetings.  Our cause has been getting the attention of the community, as we have had reporters from ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, the Orlando Sentinel, the Seminole Chronicle, online blogs, and a several radio stations have provided great coverage for the employees, while the portrayal of the School Board has not been favorable - at all.

Our campaign is going well because of two things:

1.   We are on the right side of this issue.

2.   Our members are speaking up.            

 

 

 

There is money to pay for a raise, employees have earned it by making SCPS an “A” district, and every neighboring district is providing something for its employees, except ours.  It’s become clearer to the public that employees should be made a priority, not an afterthought, in the budgeting process.

The last stage of the impasse procedure, the legislative hearing, occurs this Tuesday, May 15th. In this step, the School Board reconstitutes itself as an “impartial” legislative body, which will hear final presentations from the Association- and District bargaining teams in a formal hearing.  Upon hearing both presentations and asking questions, the legislative body will make a final decision to settle the disputed salary/wage issue. It could be our 3% proposal, the Board’s 0% proposal, or something different. It will be a majority decision of the legislative body acting in the public interest.

This is our last chance to have an impact on the decision the School Board will make on Tuesday.  We must put aside other commitments if at all

possible and be a part of this hearing, and the rally occurring beforehand.  This is not over, and if we don’t continue to apply pressure, then our chances for any success will slip away.

 PLEASE, make plans to attend and be a part of this struggle.

WHERE: ESC (SCPS offices), 400 E. Lake Mary Blvd, Sanford 32773

WHEN: Tuesday, May 15th. The pre-hearing RALLY (outside of the ESC) begins at 4:30 pm.  The hearing will begin at 6:00 pm in the Board room. We will have signs for you to hold.

ATTIRE:  RED!

ALSO:  For the pre-hearing rally only, we need to make some NOISE!  If you have megaphones, hand drums, shakers, etc., please bring them!  NO amplified instruments, please.

FINAL NOTE:     As this is a public hearing, there will not be an opportunity to for public input. Instead, this is the time for both sides to make the technical presentations relating to the merits of the current proposals on the table. It is important that the hearing be an orderly one in which the teams are able to make presentations free of any distractions.  We are asking everyone, once inside the Board room, to be respectful and professional. No booing, hissing, yelling, should be displayed by our members.  Applauding your Association team after its presentation certainly is appropriate and encouraged, though!

So this is it.  If you haven’t been able to make it before but you are ready to come now, that’s ok.  If you need to bring your kids, that’s ok (we’ll let them hold a sign). If you can only make it to only the rally or only the hearing, that’s ok, too – we need everyone we can get to come out.

NOW is the time, more than ever.  This is our final opportunity to make an impact on this year’s bargaining, and your involvement is critical.

SEE YOU TUESDAY at the ESC, at 4:30, and in RED!

 

 

 SEA, SECA, NIPSCO, and SCSBDA


 Members Send Message to


 School Board - Raises for All !

April 24 - About 150 members from our four associations came out in force to protest the ZERO percent increase the School Board wants for the 7,000 + employees who are working every day to make this District great. Members lined the Lake Mary Boulevard once again, greeted by passersby who honked and waved in support.  Amid the protestors were captains who led the crowd in chants exclaiming "HEROES, NOT ZEROS!"  As the meeting started, our large group, clad in red, took seats and waited patiently for the public input portion of the meeting.

About 20 speakers from all corners of the District spoke passionately about the need for an earned increase, the greed of the Board for accepting their own optional increases while denying us anything, or how WE make SCPS great. There were even speeches delivered by family members of employees who were asking the Board to reconsider its ZERO offer and support our working families. All of the messages were powerful and eloquent.

Thanks to everyone who came out to our rally last night. It is often a challenge to spend a couple of hours on a worknight away home and family, but member involvement is making a difference. We have had very favorable coverage on television in the past week, from print, TV, and radio media. Also, there is overwhelming support for our cause in online blogs and comments to news stories in the Orlando Sentinel.  Please check out the following links, but please go to the bottom of this message to read how YOU can help bring our struggle to public:

From tonight (more to come):

http://www.clickorlando.com/news/Seminole-County-teachers-protest-
pay/-/1637132/11802020/-/3k99moz/-/index.html

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_education_edblog
/2012/04/seminole-teacher-protest-again.html

http://da.feedsportal.com/c/34256/f/623176/s/1eb343f3/l/0L
blogs0Borlandosentinel0N0Cnews0Ieducation0Iedblog0C20A
120C0A40Cseminole0Eteacher0Eprotest0Eagain0Bhtml/ia1.htm

http://www.wftv.com/news/news/local/seminole-county-teachers-
protest-again-district-co/nMg6t/

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/os-ed-employer-social-responsibility-myword-042412-20120423,0,2493278.story

Last week's rally:

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2012-04-18/features/os-no-teacher-raises-seminole-20120418_1_seminole-uniserv-school-board-board-members

http://www.wftv.com/news/news/seminole-teachers-unhappy-school-board-member-rais/nMcXb/

http://www.clickorlando.com/news/Seminole-Co-teachers-protest-over-lack-of-pay-raise/-/1637132/11071384/-/elude4z/-/index.html

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_local_blogonomics
/2012/04/board-member-pay-increases-falls-flat-with-seminole-teachers.html

We need to share with the public our frustration with a ZERO percent proposal. We are respected employees in Seminole County and spreading our message widely will be very helpful if we can get community members, parents, and students behind us.  Here's what you can do:

Go to the Orlando Sentinel Letters to the Editor webpage by clicking on the following link: 

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/orl-letters-to-editor-form,0,2447169.customform

From there, you can type in a message and send it electronically.

Remember our talking points when making your remarks:

  • Employees have earned a raise for putting this District on top once again
  • Every neighboring district is providing a raise to its employees, except ours
  • There is money in this year's budget to pay for our 3% increase
  • The School Board needs to acknowledge that its employees are really struggling
  • It was wrong for School Board members to accept an optional 4.58% increase while providing us nothing.

Please take some time to write a letter to Editor. Imagine the impact of having hundreds of us sending our message to the press!

Stay strong!  Stay united!  NOW is the time.

 

UPDATE on the Board member salary increases we told you about earlier this week (click HERE if you haven't read about this yet):

Upon receiving emails, calls, and postcards from members regarding the unfairness of accepting optional raises while providing a ZERO percent increase for thousands of employees, two Board members, Dr. Tina Calderone and Dede Schaffner, have suddenly chosen over this past weekend to GIVE BACK their raises! When questioned about her raise, Karen Almond indicated that she donated some of her increase to the United Way and the Foundation for SCPS, but not all of it.

This begs a few questions:

  • Does giving back the increase only after people learn about the Board members taking optional increases make it right?
  • Does donating some of the increase make it right, either? Did you have the luxury of using an increase to make donations?

Should these injustices go unnoticed and unanswered? Should we just "take it" and be happy we have jobs, when we are the only district employees in Central Florida who are not getting a raise this year? Should we trust in the leadership of the School Board members who have taken their own raises while leaving us with nothing, as we work second jobs, forego necessary purchases, and shortchange the futures of our own children to make ends meet?

The bargaining process hasn't provided us with a raise. Our arguments at the bargaining table haven't provided us with a raise, either. The only way to have a chance is for members to stand together and participate.

Will you join with other members to send the message to the Board that taking an optional raise while offering a ZERO percent increase is a complete lack of respect for our efforts?

Will you help make our case to the public that there IS money to pay for a raise, that every neighboring county is getting a raise, and that SCPS is the best because of its employees?

Will you take a stand so that we can increase our chances to be win?

NOW IS THE TIME.

 

PSST!  Hey, want to know a secret?

About 2 weeks ago, bargaining teams for SEA, SECA, NIPSCO, and SCSBDA declared a bargaining impasse after the School Board team proposed a ZERO percent increase. While the fact that the School Board’s providing ZERO Recognition and ZERO Respect should be upsetting enough, we wanted to share a “secret” that you will find really revolting!

Under Florida law, school board members earn an annual salary as elected school district leaders. Last year (2010-11), the state-calculated salary for SCPS school board members was $36,000, equal to the salary for a first-year teacher with a Bachelors degree. School board members need not possess a college degree, nor is the position considered a full-time job.

For 2011-12, the SCPS school board salary calculation resulted in an increase to $37,647, which is 4.58% MORE than last year. Under the law, board members can choose NOT to accept an increase. In spite of the declining revenues, increased operating costs, and loss of federal funding that led the Board to propose a ZERO percent increase for us, our school board members chose to take their increases this year when they could have declined them!

So there you have it. The 5 people who are offering over 7,000 employees a ZERO percent increase are the only 5 people who are getting an increase in our entire District this year!

How does this make you feel? Cheated? Devalued?  Betrayed? If so, perhaps you can use that energy to get involved NOW. We are organizing activities allowing members to come together, show up in force, and express ourselves to the Board and to the public.

This week, we need as many members as possible to attend the following special school board meeting:

DATE/TIME:       WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18th, 5:15 p.m.

LOCATION:        Educational Support Center (ESC), located at 400 E. Lake Mary Blvd, Sanford 32773

Members from all 4 unions will be getting together and holding signs beginning at 5:15 p.m. and will come into the Board room just before the meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. Several leaders will be speaking during public input. If you would like to address the Board, too, we ask that you use some/all of the following talking points:

·      Our employees are a big part of making SCPS a high-performing school district.

·      There IS money to pay for an increase.

·      We deserve respect and recognition, and a ZERO percent increase provides neither.

·      Every neighboring District is providing some form of increase.

·      Giving yourselves a raise when over 7,000 employees get nothing is unfair and shows a lack of appreciation.

Your involvement is critical, as your bargaining teams and your leaders can’t do this alone. If you believe that a ZERO percent increase is unfair and insulting, then you must get involved. If we roll over now, the Board will attempt to force more bad changes for employees, like (unpaid) furlough days, elimination of insurance benefits for part time employees, etc. – which they are discussing now in preparation for next year’s budget!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the UniServ office at 407-388-1131.

NOW is the time.

Seminole UniServ

SEA – SECA – NIPSCO – SCSBDA

 

SEA, SECA, NIPSCO and SCSBDA

 DECLARE BARGAINING IMPASSE

Negotiating teams for SCPS and all four associations in the Seminole UniServ (SEA, SECA, NIPSCO, SCSBDA) met this week in an attempt to complete bargaining for the 2011-12 school year. While we were successful in completing negotiations of all language items, there was no agreement on the issue of salaries/wages. Click to read the whole document

 


Pension case headed directly to Florida Supreme Court

 

TALLAHASSEE -- In another setback to Gov. Rick Scott and the other defendants, and another victory for Florida’s public workers, the First District Court of Appeal has granted the Florida Education Association’s request that last week’s pension decision be certified directly to the Florida Supreme Court for final determination. 

“We’re pleased that this case will move more quickly toward its final resolution,” said FEA President Andy Ford. “This could help hundreds of thousands of middle-class Florida families who have seen their incomes tumble while the governor and legislative leaders handed out tax giveaways to corporations.”

Last week’s ruling found the 3 percent tax on public workers’ salaries was unconstitutional and Leon Circuit Judge Jackie Fulford directed that the money that was wrongfully withheld from salaries be returned to workers with interest.

Scott and the other defendants immediately appealed Fulford’s ruling to the intermediate court. In today’s ruling, the District Court of Appeal found that the case was one of great public importance requiring immediate resolution by the Supreme Court of Florida.

Today’s ruling rejected the state’s opposition to the case being certified to the high court.

           
Copies of FEA’s suggestion for certification, the state’s response, and today’s order can be found at: http://www.meyerbrookslaw.com/Litigation.htm



 

Should Seminole County Teachers get a three percent pay raise?

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/os-poll-seminole-teacher-pay-raise-022412,0,1367254.poll

 

Frontline Report


Current Frontline Report, 03/11/2012

 

December 14, 2011                              Contact: Mark Pudlow 850.201.3223 or 850.508.9756

Judge strikes Amendment 7 from 2012 ballot

TALLAHASSEE – Florida Education Association President Andy Ford commended a ruling by Judge Terry Lewis in state Circuit Court in Tallahassee striking an amendment placed on the ballot by the Florida Legislature that would significantly alter the no-aid provision in the Florida Constitution. Judge Lewis said the ballot summary approved by the Legislature was misleading.

Click to read more...

 

FCAT Scoring Changes

On Monday, December 19th, the Florida Board of Education is scheduled to vote on a new scoring system for the FCAT, and it is poised to adopt higher cut off scores for third- through 10th-graders. If the new standards are approved, many more third-graders likely would face retention, while many more high school students likely would fail to meet the state's graduation requirements. Florida Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson is recommending new scores for the high school FCAT reading exam that are two points higher than the levels supported by a majority of the state's superintendents. These developments raise a number of questions and concerns for students, parents, and teachers:

click here to read the whole article

 

 




Click the following links to:

View a 2-page overview you can print and share with other teachers!

Read a Q & A about the lawsuit.

Review FEA's talking points.

To view the full complaint filed this morning go to http://www.meyerbrookslaw.com/Litigation.htm.

PLEASE STAY TUNED TO www.seminole-educators.org AS THIS LAWSUIT UNFOLDS!


Teachers, would you like to know more about SB 736, Merit Pay, the new teacher evaluation system, etc?  Click HERE.


 

 
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