Defation

MNEA Gets Along

by
Al Fondy¹

Compliments were given in the July 28, 2008, Tennessean about how well the MNEA and the school administration were getting along. It is not rocket science. If there is no teacher pay increase at either the state or local level, and the teachers know nothing of the dynamics, no complaints are apparent, and the teachers in the classrooms are happy, then why wouldn't the power structure be happy with the union?

"How could this happen?" one wonders. In a voluntary membership organization, a certain percentage of people would rather have peaceful relations than a pay increase. Even if a majority wishes for a pay raise (with no effort exerted by themselves), the organization cannot survive if five or ten percent decide to quit because they don't like the acrimony. (This would be a repeated erosion of five or ten percent.)

The fact is, the leaders of MNEA are quite capable of agitating for a pay raise. They present the need. But when they cannot inspire the teachers themselves, then they know how to gracefully back off and wait another year. Meanwhile, working conditions do improve.

Aside from dollars and cents, the real value of MNEA was demonstrated in the past several months when the State of Tennessee, in the person of Connie Smith, "took over" the Metro Schools. Without the local bias, generated by the Chamber of Commerce, against the MNEA, she worked with the union to identify needed changes. Other pages on this site describe the culture of fear generated over the past seven years. Smith listened to Erick Huth and recognized the major problem facing the staff and told the principals that fear and intimidation were no longer the operative methods. For many teachers, truth be told, the improved working conditions will be better than a pay increase.

So like most every year in union leadership, there are great successes and regrettable failures. The teachers of Nashville did get lucky, however, in having Erick Huth as President of MNEA at this crucial time. He has the command of details, and the depth of experience to give Connie Smith advice that works. That talent is priceless in any organization.

Update 1: On the week before Christmas, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the cost of living had gone down since September. By November 2008, the overall inflation for city workers was only 7/10 of one percent above that of a year earlier. This was primarily because of food and gasoline, both items large in a teacher's budget. So while the year started with a loss of 4.9 percent of purchasing power, two months later the teachers had gained almost all of it back. This is like a pay raise for the past two months. Considering the tax implications, this is like a pay raise over the past year. Don't tell anyone else. You know the school board would like to find ways to take even this small amount away.

¹nom de plume