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On Sunday night, Portland Public Schools announced that its classrooms would remain shuttered for a third school day, as the first-of-its-kind teachers strike extends into its second week. When will it end? We don’t know. You want the future, see a psychic. You want the opinions of your loudest neighbor? You came to the right page. In the days leading up to what would be Portland Public Schools’ first-ever teacher walkout, WW explored several ramifications, including parents’ need for child care and the question of how long their support for labor will last when they’re locked in the house with their offspring again (“Solidarity Forever,” Oct. 24). Here’s what our readers had to say:
Kim McGair, via Facebook: “The complete disregard of the students’ needs by the union is disheartening and devastating. This senior class started high school doing school in their beds on their laptops. Not a single normal moment freshman year; most of sophomore year in masks. Could the adults in the room stop messing up their lives for one fucking minute?”
Jason Jones, via Facebook: “People get chippy about workers uniting to demand better wages, decent benefits, and reasonable working conditions. It’s not actually the workers who you should be mad at, though. You should be mad at the system that doesn’t afford you these same things. Teachers are just people wolfing down their lunches during 30 unpaid minutes between classes and meetings each and every day, with meetings later on about how to work more efficiently. It’s the machine that deserves your rage, my fellow human. Rage against the machine.”
Michael V, via wweek.com: “The average pay of principals and vice principals is well over 100K. How about we eliminate those positions and instead have rotating ‘administrative duties’ for all teachers? It has been for far too long that the incentives in the public education system are to not teach but to leech off the public trough in administrative roles.”
Just doing the Math, via wweek.com: “Teachers have been complaining about smaller class sizes forever. They were complaining about smaller classes when my family was in school, 20-plus years ago. They know it will not happen because it hasn’t. The smaller class size point is just a way to make it seem like teachers care about your kids, and to dilute the REAL point, MORE MONEY.
“Your children are bargaining chips. Not everyone can afford to live in Portland, it is a fact. But 90-plus thousand a year plus benefits is decent money. People should not have to pay so that others can live well in Portland. As sure as I am writing this, there will be another teachers levy placed on the ballot along with the one already in place.”
Mark F, via wweek.com: “In some ways this is a foreshadowing of what may become of Portland. PPS is losing enrollment, due in part to this race to the bottom of education standards and certain COVID policies. The district is left with fewer dollars, and those that remain need more money. Portland is losing [its] tax base (businesses and personal). Those that remain will be asked to shoulder a bigger share of the cost to support many of the same failed policies that drove people away. Good luck, everyone.”
Dubious, via wweek.com: “If they were up front about their demands and desires, I would be more open to their message, but the way they pretend that this is about the students is so disingenuous they have no credibility with me at all.
“Take a page from the United Auto Workers. They picket and strike for better benefits and working conditions without pretending it’s good for the cars.”
CORRECTION
The Oct. 25 story “Solidarity Forever” incorrectly reported there would be one more bargaining meeting before Nov. 1. There were four. WW regrets the error.
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