Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Why McGuinty can’t back down against teachers

A premier is not a president, nor even a prime minister. He can’t call up the TV networks to demand free air time for a fireside chat.

So when Dalton McGuinty wanted a heart-to-heart with the province’s 128,000 teachers, he took a shortcut: The premier posted a speech on YouTube.

It hasn’t quite gone viral. But 21,000 hits isn’t bad for his awkwardly upbeat sermon about tough love at the bargaining table.

Trouble is, teachers are in no mood to be strong-armed in contract negotiations. The main elementary teachers’ union stormed out of talks last month, raising the spectre of a messy confrontation between educators and the education premier.

This conflict is a family affair — and not just because the premier’s wife Terri teaches kindergarten. Teachers volunteered and voted for McGuinty’s Liberals in huge numbers during the past three elections.

They always got a good deal in return: generous raises (12.5 per cent over four years in a 2008 deal with most unions) and better classroom conditions (full-day kindergarten, caps on class sizes and more prep time).

McGuinty likes to boast about making peace with teachers, reciting his favourite statistic: from 1995-2003, Ontario lost 26 million “student learning days” in the turbulent Mike Harris years; under his Liberals, “zero!”

But hell hath no fury like a teacher scorned.

Just ask former premiers Bob Rae and Mike Harris. Rae’s one-time top aide, Michael Decter, mused the other day that they signed their own political death warrants after tangling with teachers.

Will the unions try to bring McGuinty down next?

My bet is that teachers have learned the lessons of recent history. They saw how Rae’s demise begat the Harris era. And they’ve watched Toronto civic workers reap the whirlwind after wounding former mayor David Miller, whose political decline gave rise to Rob Ford.

Teachers are not oblivious to political realities. During parent-teacher interviews they sit down with the working poor, the unemployed, and people who can’t afford the fees for class field trips.

They’ve heard the doomsaying from Don Drummond, whose commission warned last month of burgeoning deficits unless spending is curbed. The influential economist urged an end to full-day kindergarten and an easing of caps on class sizes, which the Liberals are disinclined to do.

McGuinty appealed for restraint when he surprised union leaders by joining a conference call last month that set the stage for talks. Government negotiators later delivered a two-page “mandate” from cabinet: a two-year wage freeze; plus a clawback of an anachronistic “sick days” system that lets teachers bank up to 200 unused days for a lump sum cashout.

These “retirement gratuities” are really deferred compensation granted decades ago when teachers were poorly paid. Now, they are glorified attendance bonuses — and an unjustifiable $1.7-billion liability on the books.

Behind the headlines, however, the real flashpoint is a government demand to suspend a pay grid that rewards teachers for experience and educational attainment. At any one time, about half of all teachers are progressing through the ranks, from a starting salary of $42,000 to $95,000 at the top. Holding them back in the salary scale (as Rae’s government once did), even for two years, is what really rankles.

The Liberals want to streamline the grid when it kicks in again. That is, if they’re still in power. If not, the teachers’ unions can discuss future reforms with Tim Hudak’s Tories.

It’s unlikely the Liberals will back down, because these are big numbers: A zero-per-cent increase saves about $180 million a year. Locking down the grid, another $300 million.

Over two years, that adds up to nearly $1 billion. These projected savings are already baked into the budget due in late March. (Bankable sick days cost another $120 million a year.)

In a battle between taxpayers and teachers, the outcome is preordained — regardless of which party is in power. After tangling first with New Democrats, then Tories and now Liberals, the union leaders have run out of people to defeat. Other than themselves.

Original Article
Source: Star
Author: Martin Regg Cohn

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