West Contra Costa teachers authorize strike - ContraCostaTimes.com:
"The vote came as a response to forced contract changes made by the district's board of education earlier this summer, after months of negotiations failed to produce a new agreement. The district made changes to seniority provisions, increased class sizes, placed caps on teachers' current and retirement health benefits and eliminated benefits for teachers' dependents.
District officials have said they can no longer afford the current health care benefits, with the cost about doubling since 2001. They say the district is spending more money than it is bringing in, and that painful cuts are necessary to avoid bankruptcy.
Schickele has said there are other ways to make cuts -- such as shortening the school year -- and that many of the imposed changes to the contract have nothing to do with cost-saving."
"The vote came as a response to forced contract changes made by the district's board of education earlier this summer, after months of negotiations failed to produce a new agreement. The district made changes to seniority provisions, increased class sizes, placed caps on teachers' current and retirement health benefits and eliminated benefits for teachers' dependents.
District officials have said they can no longer afford the current health care benefits, with the cost about doubling since 2001. They say the district is spending more money than it is bringing in, and that painful cuts are necessary to avoid bankruptcy.
Schickele has said there are other ways to make cuts -- such as shortening the school year -- and that many of the imposed changes to the contract have nothing to do with cost-saving."
