At my chapter meeting today, there was a unanimous vote of the 30 staff present that I should vote NO! including E4E people --- Bklyn Elem CLReports coming of unanimous votes in schools today urging a NO vote on any deal. These are schools with MORE activists in them, a totally different reaction from schools run by Unity. Imagine if one day MORE had activists in most of the schools?
We also had a meeting today and a unanimous vote to vote no. Even the unity member voted no! --- Qns Middle School CL
A number if our teachers joined MoRE today! And definitely are demanding a Vote No! --- Bklyn elem school teacher
MORE is calling for the UFT to refuse any agreement until there is a reasonable law passed.
More MORE.
Below is an official statement from MORE about the purpose of the rally. I personally believe there is a deal and has been for days and it would only fall apart of the union leadership senses a revolt from below that goes much deeper than the organizing a group like MORE does. Like I mean deep into the Unity Caucus faithful. If the rank and file in Unity are having problems themselves (and there are some signs of fraying at the edges) or are finding they are not able to convince the people in their schools, then the leadership may feel they have to backtrack somewhat. But given their overwhelming interest in keeping their rep with ed deformers as the "reasonable" union and their need to -- in the immortal words of Unity hack Peter Goodman, "satisfy the Rhee crowd" my sense it they feel they can control the members (by sending out their hordes into the school to sell the agreement) easier than the negative public reaction.
See speculation on the UFT being possibly willing to walk away and take the PR hit --- at RBE (29 Hours And Counting) and at Gotham Schools.
* Please attend Thursday rally - 3:30 PM in front of 52 Broadway *
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
As of this writing it is still unclear if there will be an agreement between the UFT and the DOE about teacher evaluations.
The rally outside the DA tomorrow is directed against the junk science teacher eval schemes that are being foisted upon us, and demands that the rank and file have a say in a ratification of any agreement. It calls for our union to end the self destructive "collaboration" with union hating corporate "reformers" and politicians in both political parties. It is our union even when it is wrong. The rally is not against the UFT leadership.
If there is no agreement offered on Thursday it signals an intensification of the anti union campaign and we have to be prepared to join in the defense of our union even while we challenge its leaders in the upcoming election. No agreement will mean that Bloomberg and his cronies feel they can better advance their anti union/privatization program by smearing the UFT for forfeiting the increased state aid money. However, it will also represent a recognition by the union leadership of the limits of what they can sell to an angry UFT rank and file.
On the other hand, if an agreement is presented we urge delegates to vote no. They are [still] our delegates even if they generally follow the Unity leadership. MORE stands for for a positive alternative to concessionary bargaining based on rank and file and community based resistance. Giving in to the bully only whets the bully's appetite. Appeasing the aggressor never worked, even for the appeasers. The UFT leadership desperately wants to be able to sell something to the DA as a victory. We know this is false even if they do reach an agreement.
We demand a decent contract, decent working and learning conditions and an end to the mayoral dictatorship which former UFT President Weingarten helped to put in place. We are calling for the UFT leadership to get up off their knees, organize the membership and join the growing movement against the corporate takeover of public education.
Slogans for signs:
Bloomberg's Education Policy: Ineffective
Value Added = Junk Science
Don't Blame Teachers for the Effects of Poverty
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