Cynthia Lee: The Price of Justice is Too High for a Fairfax County Public Schools Teacher Firing Case
By Candi Peterson, WTU Gen. Vice President
Statements or expressions of opinions herein 'do not' represent the views or official positions of DCPS, AFT, Washington Teachers' Union (WTU) or its members. Views are my own.
Statements or expressions of opinions herein 'do not' represent the views or official positions of DCPS, AFT, Washington Teachers' Union (WTU) or its members. Views are my own.
It’s easy to take for granted the rights and benefits we have as union members. That is, until we need the support of our local union. It’s like insurance. No one ever thinks they are going to need insurance until you get sick, you are in an accident or your house burns down.
Working in education carries risk and none of us, even tenured teachers aren’t immune anymore. From accusations of corporal punishment, workplace disputes, imperfect evaluation ratings, bully principals, suspensions and terminations, teachers regularly face a myriad of problems in the workplace, like never before.
Imagine if you had to seek redress on your own. The price of justice would be way too high for most of us to afford. Not to mention, most people need technical assistance in interpreting their union contract or help with understanding all the rules and time lines governing the grievance and arbitration process.
I get a lot of calls regularly from DC teachers ranging from questions about the contract to how to approach their boss to advice on how to deal with an administrative investigation to requests to grieve a workplace dispute, suspension or termination.
It caught me off guard when I received a voicemail from Cynthia Lee, a former African American Fairfax County public school teacher who had been terminated in 2012 after 11 years. I couldn’t imagine how I could be of help. So it seems my blog, The Washington Teacher caught Lee’s attention and she thought I could offer her some The Washington Teacher: Cynthia Lee: The Price of Justice is Too High for a Fairfax County Public Schools Teacher Firing Case: