Tag "CTA"
Back to homepageModest-seeming CalSTRS pension estimate lacks key context
The California Teachers Association and the California Federation of Teachers do a good job of promoting the narrative that state teacher pensions are very modest at best. It’s true that there aren’t the same type of outrageous stories that we see in
Read MoreTeachers win Torlakson battle, but does Brown want them to win war?
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson’s defeat of reformer and fellow Democrat Marshall Tuck on Tuesday prompted analysis pieces that outlined how California’s union-dominated education establishment had rang up another win. While Tuesday night was grim for liberals, embattled teachers
Read MoreTuck outraising incumbent, but union looms large
Education reformer Marshall Tuck has accomplished a rare feat for a political challenger: He’s raised more money than the incumbent. According to the most recent campaign finance disclosure reports released Monday, Tuck has raised nearly $1.6 million since he launched his campaign
Read MoreTorlakson continues lying about teacher-discipline law AB 215
Tom Torlakson supports a status quo in which an average of 2.2 of the state’s 275,000 public school teachers are fired each year for incompetence — a figure so ridiculous you barely need to add context. It shows the public
Read MoreCTA battles CA Democrats
In a surprise twist this election season, the CTA and its backers, across a number of pressing issues, have adopted positions at odds with powerful Democratic incumbents and newcomers. The catalyst was the Vergara v. California case. Education scholar Joshua
Read MoreRecords show unions massively fund CA Dem Party
At a time when two Democratic lawmakers stand accused of bribery and public corruption, California’s most powerful labor unions have kicked back more than a million dollars to the California Democratic Party. According to state campaign finance records posted Monday evening,
Read MoreIn debate, Torlakson misrepresents teacher-discipline bill
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson debated challenger Marshall Tuck on Wednesday night and once again found himself on the defensive over the teacher tenure laws targeted in the Vergara decision. Cabinet Report details how Tuck went after …
Read MoreAbsurd Prop 2 provision shows extent of teacher unions’ clout
If you want an example of just how powerful the teachers unions are in Sacramento, consider Proposition 2. The measure was placed on the November ballot by the Legislature at the urging of Gov. Jerry Brown, who depicts it with
Read MoreUnions bank on CA for new gains
Across the country, union membership has long been in fairly steep decline. After a series of recent reverses, including a failed attempt to pass national minimum wage legislation in Washington, D.C., union leaders shifted to a state-by-state, city-by-city approach to advancing their
Read MoreTeacher compensation database undercuts CTA claims
The Transparency California group’s database of school district compensation undercuts teacher unions’ claims that teacher pay scales are ungenerous and capped at unfairly low levels. When very generous health benefits and good pension benefits are factored in, that doesn’t look
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