On February 20th, the board of the Mott Community College Education Association (MCCEA), Mott Community College’s faculty union, voted to support the United Teachers of Flint’s (UTF) decision to authorize job actions in response to the Flint Board of Education’s recent rejection of a tentative contract.
Last month, the Flint school board overturned a settlement agreement that had been reached between the teachers’ union and school district administrators – despite three members of the school board having already sat on the bargaining committee that had approved the settlement. Ever since, school board members have refused to explain their rationale to educators, parents or the public.
UTF has filed Unfair Labor Practice charges with the Michigan Employment Relations Commission against the Flint Board of Education.
“Not only is this troubling for the education of Flint’s students, it is also alarming that a board would reject an agreement that both the teachers and administrators have worked tirelessly to achieve,” said Kim Owens, MCCEA President.
Flint Community Schools has faced a worsening problem in recent years of experienced teachers leaving the school district to seek higher wages in neighboring districts so they can better provide for their families. The teacher salary schedule in Flint is the lowest in Genesee County and ranks near the bottom among all public schools across Michigan.
“The Flint school board is putting our kids’ futures in jeopardy by treating our school district’s teachers and staff so horribly,” said Karen Christian, an elementary school teacher and president of United Teachers of Flint (UTF). “We have no other choice but to take action to protect the long-term interests of Flint students, families and educators.”
