Labor

I wish more parents and townspeople attended these school committee meetings, because were more to witness the behavior of the unionists (one hesitates to speak of them principally as teachers), I’ve little doubt that support for them would evaporate even more rapidly than it is currently doing. The committee discussed volunteers for various extracurricular activities,…

Patrick Crowley took the podium making his case for the teachers’ to be paid for striking, and I can see that the teachers, at least those in attendance, are not but so embarrassed by his antics. He began his presentation by insisting that he be able to cross examine administrators. The committee’s lawyer stated that…

I have to admit to being somewhat astonished, Michael, at your protestation that the American worker is at the rock bottom of exploitation. Perhaps I’ve been distracted by the sheer volume of consumer goods that workers are able to afford. By their lengthening life spans. By their expanding educations. It is true that I lean…

The hardest job I ever had was a line cook. 110 degree air, steaks on the grill, fries in the frialator, toast ready for the club sandwich, waitresses waiting, orders coming in, orders going out, sauté ready, steamer buzzing, this one well done, that one rare, fries are ready, I need that club, 86 corned…

Readers who have never gained the insight that comes with wearing a blue collar more extensively than for part-time teenager jobs might benefit from some explanation of the way in which incentives work in that world — specifically in residential construction. The boss wishes to make money and expand his business, both of which require,…

I heard an eye witness account, last night, of the daily start-of-day ritual at Tiverton High School. Apparently, the teachers all sit in their cars until exactly the time at which they have to report to their classrooms, and then they all march in as a group. As anybody who has ever worked in a…

Here’s what the NEA’s man in Tiverton, Patrick Crowley, had to say when I suggested that a particular legal claim of his — that a failure of the administration to pay the teachers for their day of striking proved that they were not considered salaried and were therefore entitled to overtime — was, well, deceptively…

An apology may be in order for my having not been fast enough on my feet as I’ve attempted to keep track of Tiverton teacher union negotiations amidst all of the other things on my schedule. I should have caught the accounting trick in this, but the reporter’s and the union’s presentation left me merely…

Sometimes I find myself shaking my head at how teachers — of all people — are willing to allow themselves to appear: Teachers changed their proposal from a three-year contract to a two-year contract, but deMedeiros said the percentage salary increases did not differ much from a previous proposal. Instead of asking for 3.75 percent…