LAUSD FALSE IMPRISONMENT OF TEACHERS DOESN'T "BALANCE STUDENT SAFETY WITH TEACHERS' RIGHTS
(Mensaje se repite en Español)
(For a national view of public education reform see the end of this blog post)
Daily News Reporter Barbara Jones reports in her article "LAUSD 'jails' fill with teachers as misconduct complaints rise" that "the cost is enormous: $1.4 million a month in salaries...and $865,000 to hire substitutes. What neither she nor any other mainstream media reporter tells you is that this short term loss to LAUSD is more than compensated for when these housed, jailed or rubber room teachers- pick you euphemism- are coerced into resigning or are ultimately dismissed.
Last year LAUSD brought false and often completely fabricated charges on the vast majority of the 853 teachers it forced out of their jobs, who were at the top of the salary scale or about to vest in expensive lifetime health benefits- something LAUSD is already $13 billion in the hole on for those teachers who have already vested and/or retired. By replacing these targeted teachers with novice teachers at the bottom of the salary scale and with much diminished benefits, LAUSD saves over $60,000 in salary and benefits per teacher. Do the math. This amounts to a $51 million savings in just the first year after these mostly innocent teachers have been liquidated. And this is a gift to the District that keeps on giving in subsequent years.