Judge halts teachers' strike

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has granted a restraining order prohibiting the city's teachers union from staging a one-day strike Friday.

L.A. schools Supt. Ramon C. Cortines said he was "elated" regarding the decision by Judge James C. Chalfant, which was issued moments ago.

"I’m hoping that this will provide the opportunity for the bargaining unit and the school district to sit down and try to work out some of the issues," said Cortines, "and to deal with the economic situation we find ourselves in, which is not going away this year, next year or the year beyond."

In its pleadings, the Los Angeles Unified School District cited student safety concerns as well as disruptions to state and advance placement testing.

United Teachers Los Angeles scheduled the strike to protest looming teacher layoffs that would disrupt faculties and lead to larger classes.

-- Howard Blume

Comments

[Francisco Cardenas]

I am still amazed that people believe that the public school system should mirror private education ... or is it just the teachers who think that public schools should mirror small-class-size private schools? Schools in the Mid-west have more than 40-50 students in each class and the drop out rates are much less than California's.

[nag]

Thank you Mr. Cortines for standing up for what is right and legal.

It is hard to believe some of the comments here about "weak" unions, militarization of campuses, racist testing etc. These are the sort of comments you read in France and Italy where working hard for a living and prospering based upon your own skill set and efforts are unknown concepts. We have too many tenured teachers who no longer care nor try. They are just collecting their inflated paychecks and putting in their time waiting for their over the top pensions. It's because of these worthless teachers that those of us who actually pay taxes are getting fed up with the system. I certainly hope we do have to lay off several thousand teachers. I just wish they would get rid of the longest tenured, and most overpaid ones first.

The various teachers' union bosses just make the situation worse by refusing to recognize the financial realities. They are asking for more benefits, more pay, more teachers and more classrooms at a time when tax receipts are rapidly falling. Maybe they should realize that all the illegals living too many to an apartment, who don't pay property taxes out of their own pocket as we home owners do, are a very big part of the problem.

[Annette]

To all you people who are criticizing and insulting teachers... I have a PhD. My record includes degrees from well-known institutions. My grades and other experiences are solid enough that I could take my pick of a number of professions. I love teaching and thought about becoming a teacher at one point. I don't want to be rich. I just want to make enough to live on. I have chosen not to teach, however. Why? Because of disrespectful comments from people like some of the ones on this board. I don't understand why there is so much animosity towards teachers. Take out your frustrations on CEOs or criminals or speculators or others who produce much less than they consume in our society. Teachers work very hard. They are not paid a lot. Have some respect, people! I doubt that any of you would last a month as a teacher. If you are not a teacher and have not observed people teaching since you were in K-12, then shut it! You have no idea what you are talking about. You are putting good people like me off the idea of getting into teaching. Stop complaining and start supporting teachers!

[Mary Pat McFinnegan]

Dum***s Bob Johnson--Didn't you learn cause and effect in Logic 101? The 50% drop out rate is NOT the fault of teachers; it is because students cannot walk the stage to graduate if they fail the CHSEE Test--and most cannot pass it because they are Special Education students forced buy the state to take it, as well as limited-English speaking. Some even are so turned off by the violence or tedium of their school life they opt to take the GED or just go to community college.
Get your facts straight., folks. We are still planning to be at work; we are trying to draw attention to the fact that Cortines is not allowing President Obama's stimulus money to reach the classtrooms, and that he is expanding not reducing class size. Stimulus money is meant to spent now, not stashed away and used at whil later on.

Teachers have worked without a contract for two years now. We've seen health care cut to bare bones, programs cut or downsized throughout--except at the top. No cuts downtown at the lap of luxury housing our administrative leaders and their 100s of paper-pushers, all of whom chose not be in a classroom.

Tell you what, Bob--how about we lock you in a trailer without air or heat for 6 hours , with 48 hormonal 18 year-olds, many of whom are in gangs, sexually abused, psychologically damaged by horror stories in their dysfunctional families--probably many of whih never read a book, either--and you can only leave to go to the restroom at specified hours and times in the day, maximum 3. You can buy your own supplies and even mop your own floors because no one else will for an entire school year. Try to teach kids whose parents send them to school with Ipods and cell phones, no paper or pens.
Work in a graffitti-tagged environment with 3000 kids squashed into a school built for 2000, and eat government issue food in kitchens overrun by ants. I'm in one of the better schools, too.
I like my students and I am good at what I do. 85% of my students passed the CHSEE.Stop generalizing like 6 year-olds and visit your local schools before popping off. That is just using basic intelligence.

[Robert Lambert]

When things fall apart it is human nature for everyone to start pointing fingers at one another.

The teachers are often wrongly vilified by the actions of their union. The UTLA went along with the corrupt LAUSD administration as long as they were getting their piece of the pie. Now that the money is gone and the corrupt administrators are scrambling to save their jobs they are both trying to throw one another under the bus.

The simple solution in my eyes is to allow a voucher system option for everyone. The voucher system will allow parents that really care for their child's education to send them to private schools or charter schools where they can be reimbursed for some of the costs. The caring parents will find a way to pay for the education no matter how poor they are.

Nobody wants to talk about the rotten parents and students who have destroyed this public school system. I am a single guy and I will gladly support more taxes for schools even though I don't have kids. However, why in the hell would I want to pay a tax increase for the results the LAUSD has produced?

[JRH]

Those that blame the teachers are clearly not aware of the difficulty teachers face in the classroom. Those complainers have never taught and likely were part of the problem when they were in school. The I-Pods, cell phones, and hormones are just the opening episode. Parents are quick to blame all but themselves. They make excuses because they "have to work." However, raising your children is not the duty of a school district. As sad as it sounds, it is clear from some comments today that school also provides the perfect "baby-sitting" situation for many. It only takes one day in a LAUSD classroom to see how many students could care less about school and many likely will never care. They want to be entertained and when that doesn't materialize, they tune out the teachers. "411" students - succeeding in school is hard work and hard work is a combination of two four-letter words many LAUSD students refuse to utter or live by. That's straight up. Good teachers can't teach students determined to not take school seriously. Further, it is difficult to teach a class when significant amounts of the students have weak or nonexistent English skills. LA County, alone, pays out over $1 billion to illegals in total services. That is one-ninth of what the State of California pays out to illegals. Imagaine IF we taxpayers didn't have to pay illegals in this state? Wow ... pipe dream. Anyway, SoCal parents need to get over themselves and make their children get the job done - no excuses. You live in a polluted fish bowl and have no concept that the rest of the country looks at LA and wonders "what's wrong with those people?" The answer isn't far from reach. Self accountability is as illegal a concept in SoCal as is one-tenth of the population. Shameful - SoCal used to be more like the rest of America instead of an emerging Third World country. LAT - are you open enough to publish this or will you stick to your approach of complete immunity for those creating the problems?

[Roman A]

I don't hate teachers. I was a paraeducator in special ed for 5 years at Norwalk La Mirada Unified, and I can tell you that teaching is a calling that special people take. With that said, I belive that the UNION is the single biggest reason I no longer teach and find myself in the private sector. Good Teachers need to get together and oust the BAD ones. I know that this can be done from inside, but the UNION has a strangle hold on the entire staff. Non teacher that reads this, please understand that the teachers are at war with the RED tape that the UNIONS have forced on the work place. Good TEACHERS need to stand up to what is right, and rid yourself of the roaches that call themselves "teachers".

[Wayne]

How can a union react if its employer makes unilateral decisions without involving input from the union. Stimulus money has been allocated and positions cut without proper involvement from UTLA. Who knows where money is better spent, bureaucrats who have not seen actual students for decades or teachers, who serve the students on a daily basis. The stimulus money will be wasted unless action is taken. Let the union use its constitutionally guaranteed power (the right of assembly) to redress its grievences. This decision helps the district waste millions of dollars!

[fatu]

wow sounds like you guys have real drama going on in california.... I'm a soon to be teacher and union member of the ibew who lost my arm in an electrical accident. and as i read these comments i think of one thing i learned in the hospitol that made me want to teach junior high. Never forget the reason you are teaching and the money wont seem an issue. I understand in cali you make 75000 over here you start at 25000. which is scarce compared to the 100000 i was making but well worth the satisfaction. As for the strike i believe there was a famous quote i loved when i was younger give me liberty or give me death but you must remember the context of the message. the greater good i believe.

[mschliebs]

All those lavendar-hill educated bullies who threatened with a walkout are criminals, living pay check to pay check. Think about it. Why else would they not be willing to take a pay cut as so many of us have done and will do.

[Gman]

C'mon people , teachers taught all of you guys to read what you're reading, write what you're writing and be independent thinkers.They are the ones who are putting themselves on the line ,loosing a day of pay for all of your kids. Are any of you going out there? I thought so. Teachers are the true heroes and they have my approval. GO TEACHERS!

[Dwight]

Anyone who says that teachers 'care more about pay than their students' is beyond asinine.

The fact of this matter is that teachers are held over a barrel by both LAUSD and UTLA. At least UTLA attempts to fight on their behalf. Schools produce no easily discernible 'product' and bring in no revenue. Thus, they are targeted to get cuts. Additionally, there is no easy way to determine 'good' teachers. LAUSD has tried, and erroneously spent millions attempting to make that very distinction.

While all that's going on, parents continue to complain about work load and the fact that teachers actually try to get their students to work. My wife assigned a project over Spring break, and had parents tell their children that they did not need to complete the assignment. That's right, parents send the message to their children that social development and 'having a break' is more important than actually learning. Then they blame the teacher if their student has ongoing problems.

In all this, teachers have ZERO power. UTLA has power. LAUSD has power. Teachers do not. So they must do what UTLA asks of them if they want, in any way, to fight for their jobs.

I hope that teachers still strike on Friday. My wife is a 2nd year teacher that will be losing her job. This ruling says she can't strike because it might hurt the students? I'm much more worried about what happens to the students next year, when there will be thousands less teachers in LAUSD.

Ideally, these cuts would come from underperforming teachers, not young, energetic ones. That fault lies with UTLA and their ongoing support of the tenure system. But teachers still have to do what UTLA says because UTLA is the ONLY group fighting to keep teachers jobs (which helps students). LAUSD is not fighting to help students, they're trying to correct a budget problem that they created. But they keep their jobs.

Why is it illegal for teachers to want to keep their jobs? Because their only weapon is a strike? Stop blaming teachers and realize that they, like everyone else during this recession, are simply fighting for their livelihoods and the jobs they love.

If you really care about this problem, start asking harder questions of LAUSD and their spending policies that have let millions go to consultants and administrators without ANY return. Why doesn't Cortines offer to cut his own salary to nothing? How many different District offices are scattered about when there is room in the downtown Beaudry building that lies vacant?

[Gman]

Elated Teacher, im surprised you are against teachers , being one yourself. Im assuming you didn't get a pink slip and you are one who is about to retire and cares less about the future of education.So sad. And JAR, it looks to me that you didn't even graduate from high school,, there's no such thing as
" 1000%" , why are you commenting at all? If anyone needed a teacher ,it's you buddy.

[Zeke Quezada]

The common opinion among those in favor of this labor actions seems to be that those in opposition just do not understand what it is like to be a teacher. That those with differing opinions would never or could ever do that job. The truth is that in these economic times plenty of us can see the writing on the wall that is placed there by the lack of job security in our own professions. Why should a second year teacher lose her job because a union is far more concerned with protecting teachers who are no longer effective?

I speak from experience, I taught in an inner city high school in Los Angeles for 6 years. I saw how bad some teachers taught and I saw good administrators who were frustrated with the process by which they were forced to keep these people. The worse part was that young, energetic, motivated teachers were always left out to fend for themselves.

The Union has some pretty serious issues to deal with, but the major one should be how they intend to deal with a problem they have created.

Testing is an issue, but are you really going to claim that children in LAUSD are under performing because the money being spent on testing is limiting their ability to achieve?

It's culture, it's environment, it's parents and it's practice. There is a sense of professionalism that is lacking in the teaching profession and UTLA does nothing about it when it skirts accountability.

[Utah Chris]

Unbelievable - teachers moaning because they have to sacrifice a few job cuts to align with the budget. Unbelievable - teachers moaning about the same thing every year for the last 30 years. They want more money for everything. Their union is corrupt and protects the crappy teachers (as LA Times has illustrated). Cut the dead branches first, fix your own house before asking me for more money. All I hear is moaning teachers that are unwilling to make the hard choices and do the right thing for their own organization. Dissolve the union and let the cream rise to the top. Keep the cream and discard the crappy teachers. Align pay with performance.

[Bob Johnson]

Looks like the unfireable teachers can't stand all the attention their joke profession has gotten in the Times in the last week. Since it's easier to build a pyramid than get rid of a tenured teacher, the students and taxpayers continue to suffer while the unions control the idiots in Sacramento. What other j/ob can you have a 50% success rate and still keep your highest-in-the-country salary and lifetime health & pension benefits. Until "educators" can be fired in an instant for their horrible job performance, the education system in this state will continue dying on the vine.

[scott]

I'm a UTLA member, but I have to admit... this whole mess is UTLA's fault! Look, these budget cuts shouldn't be a huge deal; the payroll needs to be trimmed and there are teachers that deserved to be fired.

The problem is that UTLA spends so much time writing and protecting a contract that basically guaranties life-long employment that LAUSD teachers end up being among the lowest paid in the state!

Why does Duffy continue to claim that there is no fair way to evaluate a teacher's performance? EVERY other industry/profession has developed some way to evaluate their employees, so why should teaching be any different?

[Wesley O'Brien]

65,000 a year for 8 and 1/2 months of work and 7 hour days

Sounds like one of the best jobs in American

Stop letting the Teachers Unions pull the wool over you eyes

[Ms M]

Today I watched 30 8th graders with 3rd grade reading abilities stare at their California Standards Tests for two hours. Did I fail as their English teacher because they weren't sailing through their state tests? We followed the state's guidelines and practiced the kinds of reading, writing, and speaking that 8th graders are supposed to know. As their teacher, I've continued to give my students what they need and what they deserve to move up in their education.

My best efforts won't make a dent in the dropout rate if I get laid off. As an English teacher, I will most likely be replaced by a teacher who left the classroom years ago to become an instructional coach, literacy expert, etc. My students, already behind grade-level standards and disadvantaged further as English language learners, will not flourish is crowded classrooms. They will not escape their ignorance under the tutelage of some office-bound bureaucrat forced back into the classroom at my expense. Everyone rips apart the teachers for poor student achievement, but how are my kids going to do any better when they're crammed 40-deep into a tiny room with a teacher who resents having to be with them?

[Amy]

The one day strike for the reasons of trying to preserve newer teachers jobs seemed ineffective from the start. Besides interrupting testing and education, it would leave students in an unsafe environment for an entire school day. A one day strike does not show the district that teachers are ready to fight to save jobs. Saving the newer teachers is important, but a bigger issue is the change of staffing is affecting students. If the proposed district cuts happen, it will put older teachers with seniority in the classroom, because their district office jobs will no longer exist. These people chose to work in the district office for several reasons like more money, not working with kids, and less responsibility. These are the people that will be teaching LAUSD's students if the new teachers are laid off. The new teachers that work 16hour days preparing lessons, grading work, and helping students will be unemployed, while those from the district office that chose not to work with kids will be in classroom that they worked hard to avoid. Yes, LAUSD needs to make cuts and changes, but these are the wrong changes.

[Bucket]

the district has PLENTY of money available to save teachers' jobs (it operates on an 11 to 13 BILLION dollar annual budget)...this strike was organized and supported to get lausd to readjust its priorities back to where the public believes and expects it to be (teachers and students first, out-of-classroom "administrative support" last)...seems to me the tactic is working, as the district has "suddenly" and feverishly begun to negotiate in-favor of this pro-teacher, pro-student stance...thanks to all who continue to support and speak out on behalf of both our hardworking teachers and students

[Kevin]

I agree with Luciano 100%. As a LAUSD middle school teacher, I have to deal with disrespectful, defiant and disruptive students on a daily basis. Charter schools and Private schools don't have to put up with the most difficult students. They kick them out and send them to their local public school.

Sure the educational system is flawed. Social promotion gives students a false sense of security. I've had students tell me "Why should I pass this class, I'm still going to the next grade anyway". The sad fact is , he was right.

I also believe the "old school" paddle on the backside was an effective punishment for certain behaviors. Today students can curse out the entire faculty, and the only punishment is to send them home on "suspension" where they will most likely spend the day watching tv and playing Xbox.

[Sarah]

Reading these comments, it's easy to tell who is actually a teacher. If you currently work at a school in LAUSD, you would know that the walk out had nothing to do with "bad" teachers or tenured teachers or making more money. At my school, the 19 teachers in danger of losing their jobs have only been in the district for one or two years. They are fresh out of teaching programs, have Masters degrees, are involved in after school activities, and actually CARE about teaching these kids. The budget cuts aren't affecting "bad" teachers - in fact, they are the ones who will be replacing the teachers at our schools. Some of you really need to do your research before you comment!

[Lilly]

Teaching is not a Business. Children's education is not a business. Ask a teacher who has invested time, effort, and money why he or she became a teacher? It will not be the money, but the children and the community.

Anyone who feels that teachers are spoiled and that it is an easy job, go into any classroom for a day then speak. Prepare five different lesson a day with materials bought out of your own pocket, (who will reimburse it?) not the LAUSD

If teachers only used LAUSD resources to teach then students would not be performing.

Our education system is danger but not responsibility of the educator but an educational system that views children's education as a business. Yes in a business if employees do not perform they are replaced, but children are not a business they are little human beings that go into the classroom with many needs that have to be fulfilled by the educator regardless. Teachers are not teaching to make money but to educate the future generations.

Give a teacher a perfect class where all children speak English, and parents are nurturing and children who have a safe home environment, who come to school well rested, students motivated to learn and where all the parents are involved not just 3 out of a class of 30. Then a class size would not matter.
That is very unlikely, not in an urban city like los angeles.

Anyone who knows about a child's development is aware about the importance of a classroom environment. having an overcrowded classroom, is not the best learning environment for any child.

Children will be greatly affected by class increase because they are still expected to perform in an environment that does not have room to explore, and who will be competing with more students to get help and attention.

Teachers want the LAUSD to spend money where it is needed the most in THE CLASSROOM/CHILDREN. Not in so called experts, or unnecessary mini-districts, or tests that do not accurately assess student's performance.

It is not the children's fault that the LAUSD did not do a good job managing the money in recent years.

[jdhteacher]

HILARIOUS! to read the radio-generated talking points of the truly ignorant. While I will agree there's plenty of money already in public education (though, often misspent), and I DO believe many unions have, perhaps, negatively crossed some sort of line, I will NEVER be dumb enough to accuse teachers or being lazy, greedy, or primarily self-interested.