Mike Bloomberg Rightly Rips Teacher Union Mismanagement in New York City

Impact

Mike Bloomberg, mayor of New York City, is waging a war against the United Federation of Teachers. Recently, Governor Cuomo and New York State legislators sided with the union regarding the application of teacher evaluations.

The New York Post wrote, “Under the plan that was adopted, parents would be able to get ratings of only their kids’ current teachers not those who might teach them next year.” 

Bloomberg indicated, “That’s the biggest flaw here. It’s nice to know the ratings of your teacher. What do you do with it? The real answer is you’re in the middle of the school year, and you can’t move your children (from a substandard teacher]. It’s of no real use.”

This is another obvious example of how warped the teachers’ unions are in this country. It’s always what’s in the best interest of the teachers, not the children? 

In Bloomberg’s words, “The union is not there to help our students ... the union is there for its members to protect them. When they’re sex offenders, they protect them. When they’re criminals, they protect them ... They use students as a ploy.”

Historically, teachers who have committed crimes in New York City schools that include sex offenses and theft are put into a special paid limbo for a period of time and then reintroduced into the teachers’ pool. Teaching is the only profession, aside from the clergy, where sex crimes do not lead to automatic, on-spot dismissal.

Relating to teacher ratings, it is critical for parents to be able to monitor their children’s teachers before the instruction period begins, not after. Only with transparency will the rotten eggs in the teacher pool be weeded out, so that, all the good teachers can be honored for the outstanding work they do.