Modern School: Gates and Villaraigosa: Screw Family Leave! Screw the Feds! Fire 25% of All Teachers!

Modern School: Gates and Villaraigosa: Screw Family Leave! Screw the Feds! Fire 25% of All Teachers!

Gates and Villaraigosa: Screw Family Leave! Screw the Feds! Fire 25% of All Teachers!

by Michael Dunn

The Gates Foundation has come out with a new report saying that principals in Los Angeles Unified School District’s (LAUSD) schools should have more authority in hiring teachers—No surprise there. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa strongly backs the report—No surprise there, either. This increased authority would allow principals to permanently nix displaced tenured teachers who have long standing in the district, even if they have been displaced due to budget cuts, declining enrollment, illness or parental leave, thus negating the protections of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Los Angeles Times reported today.

FMLA provides employees with unpaid, job-protected leave of up to 12 weeks for having children or caring for sick family members. The law guarantees that employees have their same jobs when they return from leave, or at least a comparable job with the same employer AND at the same salary. Furthermore, the law protects employees from retaliation or punishment for taking leave, including the preservation of any perks, benefits or raises they

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