Gov. backs law to halt layoffs of junior teachers
LOS ANGELES -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday he supported a proposed state law that would prevent teacher layoffs based on seniority, a stance that quickly drew the ire of teachers unions while being lauded by civil rights activists.
Schwarzenegger appeared at Edwin Markham Middle School in the Watts area of Los Angeles, which lost more than half its teachers in layoffs last year because they were largely new hires.
"Several teachers of the year have gotten pink slips. How can that happen if they are award-winning teachers?" the governor told an auditorium full of cheering children. "It is very important we change the system."
The California Teachers Association, which represents teachers statewide, and United Teachers Los Angeles, the union in the Los Angeles Unified School District, has denounced the bill proposed by state Sen. Robert Huff, R-Diamond Bar.
The unions said the proposal infringes on teachers' rights while glossing over the issue of
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