The Associated Press reported yesterday that the union representing 10 high schools run by the Archdiocese of New York urged teachers to call in sick to work on Thursday to protest the lack of a new contract.The union says about 300 of its 375 members called in sick to work, forcing some schools to close early.
A spokesman for the archdiocese says the "sick-out" has done nothing but hurt the kids in the schools and cause the teachers to lose a day's pay.
The teachers have been without a contract since August 31.
The archdiocese offered a "last, best final offer" of salary increases of 17%-19.5% that would take top salary for teachers from $45,000 a year to $58,000 a year.
In addition, teachers would have to contribute to their health care. The article does not say what percentage of a teacher's salary would go to this contribution.
No new talks have been scheduled between the union and the archdiocese.
Couple of things here:
1. Can you imagine what the tabloid press and politicians would say if Randi Weingarten urged her union members to all call in sick on a particular day to protest the lack of a new contract for UFT members and 80% did so? And can you imagine the havoc such a "sick-out" would wreak across the city?
2. The current top salary for teachers in these 10 Catholic High Schools is $54,000? Yikes, how do these teachers provide for their families? Two jobs? Three jobs? Rob banks?
I guess the archdiocese, which used to use the "free labor" of priests and nuns to teach in their schools, will argue that they cannot pay teachers livable salaries and provide health care for them because they don't have the money.
The church is, after all, in the soul-saving and charity business.
But a cynic would note that the church owns an awful lot of real estate and the cardinals and the archbishops and the bishops and pope live awfully well for men who have taken "vows of poverty".
Just take a walk by St. Patrick's Cathedral and take a look at how well Cardinal Egan is living.
I guess the cardinals and the archbishops and the bishops and the pope figure it's the lay teachers in Catholic schools who have taken a "vow of poverty."
UPDATE: The NY Post reports low-end salaries for Catholic high school teachers currently stand at $38,107 and high-end salaries currently stand at $45,757. Under the offer from the archdiocese, low-end salaries would rise to $44,585 while high-end salaries would increase to $54,701. The highest salary offered would be $58,200.
Try raising a family in New York City in 2008 on any of those figures.
Posts
