Labor
The Ocean State Policy Research Institute has kicked off LRB Watch to track the wins with the State Labor Relations Board. Despite claims from certain quarters that the board is “management” heavy, OSPRI finds that labor has one 15 of 19 decisions since 2006. When it comes to matters that OSPRI classifies as “major” —…
It would go too far to speculate that this sort of thing is widespread: Statewide testing procedures were violated at Whiteknact Elementary School last October when at least 14 third graders were given extra time, the state Department of Education has concluded. And now school officials are looking into whether another violation occurred when the…
When we here about 3% raises in union contracts, what does that mean? Seems obvious: people will make 3% more next year over this. But with union contracts, that’s not the case. In most union contracts with which I’m familiar, each position has a defined table of step increases based on years served. When we…
It appears that the most recent of the their multiple weeks off during the school year mellowed Johnston science teachers with regard to the new program that had recently been announced as foiled: During their winter break, local science teachers changed their minds and decided to participate in a project to improve science education across…
In dealing with his town’s unions in series, North Providence Mayor Charles Lombardi is imparting a lesson: Mayor Charles A. Lombardi dismissed 20 town workers last night after their unions failed to meet a 7 p.m. deadline for accepting deep cuts in wages and benefits. In all, 10 municipal workers and 10 public works employees…
Out of Warwick comes a “tentative agreement” with the municipal unions in which Mayor Scott Avedisian purports to have secured $10 million in savings between March 2009 and June 2012. The dollar amount is measured against the current contracts, expiring at the end of June, and an assumption that a subsequent contract covering the next…
North Providence Mayor Charles Lombardi has issued twenty layoff notices to public works and municipal employees that will go into effect unless their unions accept a five percent cut in salary and a fifteen percent health insurance contribution. The mayor’s had mixed results, thus far, with the police union coming up with $200,000 and the…
In a comment to my post about Tiverton school officials’ ambiguous admission of intimidation by the National Education Association, Cranstoner Donald Botts relates the following anecdote: My take on their comments was that the union was attempting to use intimidation tactics against them, but they either were not intimidated or didn’t want to admit they…
The bottom line for Tiverton — indeed, for all of Rhode Island — came into stark relief at last night’s Budget Committee meeting. The town’s infrastructure is crumbling. Taxes have been skyrocketing. The schools are laying off teachers and talking about cutting into services. And town officials are insisting that there is simply no way…
Here comes another historic, philosophical battle, this time in Providence: Education Commissioner Peter McWalters has ordered the city schools to begin filling teacher vacancies based on qualifications rather than seniority, an order that could fly in the face of the teachers’ contract. McWalters, in a no-nonsense letter yesterday to Supt. Tom Brady, said the district…
