NLA Discussion: Thorny issues

[CToruno@aol.com]

Dear David and NLA list,
A friend recently gave me a copy of David's post about "thorny issues" in
the world of adult literacy. I just wanted to add my voice (or typing) to the
chorus of people talking about working conditions and teacher organizing in
the field. I believe that David's questions are right on target and that his
assessment of the state of the field is entirely correct (part-time,
piece-meal positions with no benefits, no job security, little collective
bargaining). 
I am an adult literacy teacher working for a consortium of labor unions in
New York City. When my organization became independent of the Board of
Education six or so years ago, we, teachers and paraprofessionals, lost
all union protections. Our proposed wage scale and working conditions
vacillated wildly over that first summer and in the fall a group of
teachers began to organize with the intention of unionizing. Despite (or
perhaps because of) the fact that our employers are unionists, they were
surprisingly antagonistic and hostile towards our organizing. It seemed
their worst nightmare was a group of independent, democratic,
self-organized teachers committed to improving our working conditions as a
way of enhancing conditions for everyone in the field.  Nevertheless,
after a tough year of organizing, we succeeded in becoming what is known
as a "functional chapter" of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT). 
Sender: nla-approval at world.std.com
Precedence: list
Reply-To: nla

I wish that the story ended here, on this happy note. Unfortunately, we have
learned that unionizing is just the very first step in fighting for and
protecting the rights of workers in our field. We are currently in protracted
negotiations over our third contract. Despite the fact that our membership is
98% part-time (4 full-time teachers and over 200 part-timers), our union has
made the creation of more full-time jobs a priority demand. Management
repeatedly declared "no interest" in creating tenable, liveable jobs (with
health benefits and small pensions, paid vacations and prep time) for our
part-time colleagues, and has only recently held out the carrot of 6 new
full-time positions if we agree to, among other things, a year long
probationary period with no job security or union protections for any
part-timer taking those new full-time jobs. This seems a high price to pay
for a stable paycheck and health insurance! 
 
So, yes, our field needs organization and unionization. We need it for
ourselves and to protect and defend the quality of education our students
receive. We must recognize that our fates and those of our students are
deeply entwined; our field remains marginal, because our students are. And as
we will not accept the exploitation of our students, neither should we
passively accept our own. Good teachers need good working conditions to
remain in, and improve, the field. 
 
I look forward to your putting me on the list and to hearing the experiences
of others.
 
Emily Schnee 
<CToruno at aol.com>