Lawmakers+Seek+Ban+on+Teachers+Strikes

= By John Manganaro = =// Published in the Pittsburgh Tribune Review //= =//6/7/11//= = = = = = = =HARRISBURG -- When Pennsylvania public school teachers gained the right to strike in 1970, they quickly took advantage and made their state the unofficial teacher strike capital of the nation.= =Teachers in the state called about 28 work stoppages per year between 1970 and 1992, when legislation reduced the amount of time teachers can legally remain on strike. Since then, the state has seen an average of 11 teacher strikes annually, based on figures from the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.= =While the number and length of strikes have declined in recent years, Pennsylvania was still home to 60 percent of all U.S. teacher strikes between 2000 and 2007, according to the association.= =Now, two state representatives want to seize the opportunity presented by a Republican-controlled Legislature and ban teacher strikes.= =Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry, and Rep. Todd Rock, R-Franklin County, are to conduct a news conference today in the state Capitol to announce legislation making it illegal for public school teachers to strike while negotiating wages and benefits.= =Their announcement will reignite the decades-old debate about the merits of collective bargaining rights for public employees. Supporters say a strike ban would protect taxpayers and students from the economic interests of private unions, while opponents say strikes are necessary to ensure fair compensation for teachers and to retain skilled individuals in public education.= ="This is a bill meant to protect Pennsylvania taxpayers," Rock said on Monday. "I was a teacher for 10 years before coming to Harrisburg, so I can identify with the unions. But I also know that education is about putting the kids first, and strikes invariably put the kids last."= = Observers and officials on both sides of the issue acknowledge it's unlikely the legislation will gain significant traction in the near future, despite Republicans controlling the House and the Senate. = = "The Republicans in control of Harrisburg can't muster enough votes to pass school vouchers, and they're totally absorbed with the budget and a natural gas severance tax. There are only so many complex issues that the Legislature can take up at a time," said G. Terry Madonna, director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs at Franklin & Marshall College. = = Wythe Keever, spokesman for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, the state's largest teachers union with more than 191,000 members, said strikes are necessary to ensure the quality of education in public schools and that teachers earn fair wages and benefits. He said that teachers with a bachelor's degree often earn 15 percent to 20 percent less than equally qualified professionals entering other fields. = = "We have always looked at strikes as unpleasant and difficult situations to be viewed as a last resort," Keever said. "But we believe they must be a legal option if we want to maintain the quality of education here in our state. = = "There is no evidence whatsoever that suggests teacher strikes reduce the quality of education," he said. "In fact, if teachers' unions are able to guarantee fair wages and benefits, that will attract quality candidates to the field and reduce the turnover rate, bringing test scores up." = = Read more: [|Lawmakers seek ban of teacher strikes - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review] [] = = = =Pennsylvania Teachers’ Strikes Have Had No Negative Impacts on Academic Performance= = = =News= =home=